Maurizio Belpietro

"Well, now that almost a year has passed, I can say it. When I took over as editor-in-chief of Libero on 12 August 2009, my legs were shaking."

"A few days ago, I mentioned a bad dream that had disturbed my sleep. It was a nightmare in which Berlusconi was forced to resign and a public health government replaced him, introducing electoral legislation that took us back twenty years. In the end, a large coalition comprising Fini, Casini, Bersani, Di Pietro and Vendola defeated Il Cavaliere, bringing his long reign to an end and plunging us back into the First Republic."

"History has taken it upon itself to disprove the narrow-minded and the liars with a long trail of blood."

"For me, a journalist is someone who seeks out news, not someone who has been handed a burgundy leather badge despite never having found a single news story in their life."

"(Referring to Silvio Berlusconi) If, in order to keep the left, the wheeler-dealers and the spendthrifts at bay, I have to pay the price of having a head of government who touches women's bottoms, I have no hesitation. Better an old pig than lots of young hypocrites like Fini."

"I had a vague sympathy for the socialists. I also wrote for l'Espresso."

"If we [il Giornale] are the newspaper of Forza Italia, la Repubblica is the newspaper of the DS."

"When someone talks about freedom of the press, I laugh. I remember Eugenio Scalfari's heartfelt articles when De Benedetti ended up in prison. I remember memorable and comical pieces in Repubblica when De Benedetti presented his financial company. Not even the reports of the Duce's speeches were so enthusiastic. And la Stampa‘’ has to report on these days of crisis at Fiat. And Libero is running a series of investigations into the Roman health service without mentioning that its publisher, Angelucci, owns several clinics in Rome."

"I got my biggest scoop when I found out that Antonio Baldassarre, former president of the Constitutional Court, was telling people that a general had told him that in order to stop the referendum on the Guardia di Finanza, he had gone to Scalfaro, who in turn had intervened with two members of the Constitutional Court. I got myself invited to a dinner, sat next to Baldassarre and listened to his story, which ended up in the newspaper the next day. Compared to that, the Watergate scandal was child's play."

"(To the daily newspaper Libero) I had already hired Guzzanti. Vittorio had been less effective in recent years, Romagnoli had disappeared a bit, I was trying to hire Battista, but he said no, he was afraid, perhaps he dreamed of more important things. Galli della Loggia I simply forgot about him."

"When I asked Luca Telese to come and work for us [Libro], Luca stammered: ‘But I'm left-wing.’ I replied: ‘Who better to report on the crisis of the left?’"

"(About Sandro Bondi) He courageously said that Forza Italia must not become a party of membership cards. That people should not think in terms of factions but in a big way, like Berlusconi. Bondi was publicly mocked by Scajola for that courageous interview."

"The owner of the Omega agency gave me a photomontage with Pivetti‘s face on the body of a topless ballerina in a tutu. Knowing Farina’s total devotion to her, I called him and said, ‘Tomorrow I'm putting this photo of Pivetti with her breasts exposed on the front page’. He turned pale and started sweating. ‘Well, bare breasts, no, slightly exposed’. And I said, ‘What are you talking about, her tits are out’. He was a wreck: ‘We can't publish this photo’. ‘Are you kidding? On the front page! I spent a lot of money.’ Increasingly pale and exhausted, Farina took the photo, pulled out his cheque book and said, ’How much? I'll buy it.’"

"I have voted for various parties. Never the PCI or anything like that. Never AN. Never DC. Sometimes socialist, PRI. Once Lega. Last time Forza Italia."

"Something tells me that the Sallusti&Santanchè duo will prove to be more active, imaginative and lively than the Feltri&Belpietro duo. In any case, it will be entertaining, given that Sallusti is to Pavolini what Feltri is to Badoglio."