Italian Prime Minister Meloni Wins $5400 In Lawsuit Against Journalist For ‘Body Shaming’ Her About Her Height

In a recent court ruling, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was awarded €5,000 ($5444) in damages from a journalist, Giulia Cortese, for a social media post that was deemed as “body shaming” towards the prime minister.

The Milan court also issued a suspended fine of €1,200 ($1306) against Cortese for the tweet, which made a quip about Meloni’s height.

The incident stemmed from a 2021 clash on social media, where Cortese had published a mocked-up photo of Meloni with a picture of the late fascist leader Benito Mussolini in the background. Meloni, whose far-right Brothers of Italy party was in opposition at the time, took exception to this. Cortese then responded with further tweets, which included one that translated to “you don’t scare me, Giorgia Meloni. After all, you’re only 1.2 metres (4 feet) tall. I can’t even see you.”

Meloni’s height is reported to be between 1.58 m and 1.63 m on various media websites. The court found Cortese’s tweet to be a case of “body shaming” and ruled in favor of Meloni.

Cortese can appeal the sentence, and Meloni’s lawyer stated that the prime minister would donate any damages she receives to charity. In response, Cortese expressed her concerns about the state of press freedom in Italy and wrote on social media that it was a tough time for independent journalists in the country.

This ruling comes amid concerns raised by Reporters Without Borders, which cited a high number of lawsuits brought against journalists in Italy and ranked the country 46th in its 2024 World Press Freedom Index, a five-place drop from the previous year.

Meloni is not the first Italian public figure to take legal action against journalists. Last year, a Rome court fined best-selling author Roberto Saviano €1,000 plus legal expenses after he insulted Meloni on television in 2021 over her hardline stance on illegal immigration.

In October 2023, Meloni was in the news for dumping her partner after he was caught on tape making sexist comments.