Letters From Italy

Professor Piga of Rome University is interested, not only in the broad economic issues which find Italy struggling near the bottom of the European heap, but also in the prevailing attitudes of his fellow countrymen and in particular the young people he teaches.

He talks about Italy's migration story and how the recent troubles have re-ignited a process which sees the best of young Italian graduates looking for a future overseas. He also tackles the notion that the young are defeated and defeatist about the crisis.

At a time when Italy is in the spotlight, both for the changing of the Pope but more especially for the recent election results and the economic fragility that has brought austerity and anger, each of the letter writers talks about their sense of Italy today, it's challenges, the dangers it faces and the possibilities for the future.

Still to come in the series:

Lucia Annunziata is editor of the Huffington Post, Italy but spent many years in Italian television including a period as head of RIA, the Italian equivalent of the BBC.

Carlo Sibilia is a member of the new Five Stars Movement lead by Beppe Grillo, the new and surprising force in Italian politics.

Dacia Maraini is a novelist and playwright and an established figure in the Italian literary landscape.

Annalisa Piras is an Italian Journalist based in London.

Producer: Tom Alban.

Prof Gustavo Piga, economist at Rome University, delivers a letter about Italy today.

Today's letter comes from Lucia Annunziata, one of the most senior figures in Italian broadcasting. At the moment she's editor of the Huffington Post, Italy but in her time she was news editor of a major television station and President of the National broadcaster RAI, the equivalent of the BBC.

She writes of the last years events, the failed government of Mario Monti, the elections that have left confusion, even amongst the most experienced Italian journalists and political analysts, and the sense of doom that is almost palpable in the city of Rome where she lives.

At a time when Italy is in the spotlight, both for the changing of the Pope but more especially for the recent election results and the economic fragility that has brought austerity and anger, each of the letter writer talks about their sense of Italy today, it's challenges, the dangers it faces and the possibilities for the future.

The week's other contributors are:

Prof Gustavo Piga is an economist at Rome University.

Carlo Sibilia is a member of the new Five Stars Movement lead by Beppe Grillo, the new and surprising force in Italian politics.

Dacia Maraini is a novelist and playwright and an established figure in the Italian literary landscape.

Annalisa Piras is an Italian Journalist based in London.

Producer: Tom Alban.

Lucia Annunziata, editor of Huffington Post, Italy, delivers a letter about Italy today.

Today's letter is unique in that it's a rare chance to hear from a member of the new political party in Italian politics. Beppe Grillo's Five Stars Movement won an astonishing third of the seats in the lower house of parliament at their first attempt. It's an impact that, amongst other things, has left the political system in stalemate because they refuse to negotiate with the other parties.

The Five Stars members are not speaking to the Italian press or broadcast media, but Carlo Sibilia, a New MP representing the region around Naples, gives us a unique insight into the thinking of his party.

He describes how he came to be involved in politics, why the new party, with its heavy emphasis on Internet communication, made such an impact, and why he believes it can change politics in both Italy and the rest of Europe.

He acknowledges that much of what he says may sound idealistic, but invites listeners to appreciate that he and his colleagues have actually achieved far more than most protest movements.

At a time when Italy is in the spotlight, both for the changing of the Pope but more especially for the recent election results and the economic fragility that has brought austerity and anger, each of the letter writer talks about their sense of Italy today, it's challenges, the dangers it faces and the possibilities for the future.

This week's contributors will be:

Prof Gustavo Piga is an economist at Rome University.

Lucia Annunziata is editor of the Huffington Post, Italy but spent many years in Italian television including a period as head of RIA, the Italian equivalent of the BBC.

Dacia Maraini is a novelist and playwright and an established figure in the Italian literary landscape.

Annalisa Piras is an Italian Journalist based in London.

Carlo Sibilia, member of the Five Star Movement, delivers a letter about Italy today.

In this, the fourth letter, we hear from one of Italy's leading novelists and playwrights, Dacia Maraini.

Dacia has a reputation as a campaigning literary figure and she suggests this might have something to do with her extraordinary blend of ancestors from four nations, and her early life in Japan where she spent two years with her parents in a Japanese concentration camp.

She talks of her concerns about Italy today in terms of what she sees as the mis-information of Television which has been in the hands of one man for so long. She makes no bones about the fact that she's not a fan of Silvio Berlusconi but her real concern is that the mentality of winning at all costs has been fed by the diet of Television contests and ideas about wealth meaning achievement. This, she believes is a particular threat to women who have taken a step backwards - appearing little more than prizes in the 'game'.

She hopes the new elections herald something very new and highlights the presence in parliament of people whose interest is in the well-being of others. However, her optimism is guarded.

Italy, she says, has been like sleeping beauty. She hopes it can be awakened.

At a time when Italy's political and economic fragility is in the spotlight, 5 leading Italian figures deliver a letter about Italy today, the dangers and the future possibilities.

Five letters from leading Italians from the fields of politics, economics, television, art and journalism.

At a time when Italy is in the spotlight, both for the changing of the Pope but more especially for the recent election results and the economic fragility that has brought austerity and anger, each of the letter writer talks about their sense of Italy today, it's challenges, the dangers it faces and the possibilities for the future.

This week's contributors will be:

Prof Gustavo Piga is an economist at Rome University.

Lucia Annunziata is editor of the Huffington Post, Italy but spent many years in Italian television including a period as head of RIA, the Italian equivalent of the BBC.

Carlo Sibilia is a member of the new Five Stars Movement lead by Beppe Grillo, the new and surprising force in Italian politics.

Dacia Maraini is a novelist and playwright and an established figure in the Italian literary landscape.

Annalisa Piras is an Italian Journalist based in London.

Producer: Tom Alban.

Novelist and playwright Dacia Maraini delivers a letter about Italy today.

The last of five Letters from Italy at a time of huge upheaval in that country. The week ends with the thoughts of Annalisa Piras, the London based journalist and author of the recent TV documentary 'Girlfriend in a Coma'.

Annalisa's letter was written while on a recent holiday in her native country and so comes with the distant observation of one who spends time watching developments from a distance. She understands the British view of Italy and is concerned and puzzled that a political system that she used to understand seems to have become even more confusing and unfathomable.

Her letter takes her from the Tuscan countryside to Rome, to the coast and then, for her concluding thoughts back to London where she reflects on what is happening and what might happen as Italy continues to teeter on the edge of economic crisis.

At a time when Italy's political and economic fragility is in the spotlight, 5 leading Italian figures deliver a letter about Italy today, the dangers and the future possibilities.

Five letters from leading Italians from the fields of politics, economics, television, art and journalism.

At a time when Italy is in the spotlight, both for the changing of the Pope but more especially for the recent election results and the economic fragility that has brought austerity and anger, each of the letter writer talks about their sense of Italy today, it's challenges, the dangers it faces and the possibilities for the future.

This week's contributors will be:

Prof Gustavo Piga is an economist at Rome University.

Lucia Annunziata is editor of the Huffington Post, Italy but spent many years in Italian television including a period as head of RIA, the Italian equivalent of the BBC.

Carlo Sibilia is a member of the new Five Stars Movement lead by Beppe Grillo, the new and surprising force in Italian politics.

Dacia Maraini is a novelist and playwright and an established figure in the Italian literary landscape.

Annalisa Piras is an Italian Journalist based in London.

Producer: Tom Alban.

Annalisa Piras, an Italian journalist based in London, delivers a letter about Italy today