2024-07-01 18:22:40
The editors and directors of Buchmesse responded to the letter of Italian authors 41. IEA president: “Open to questions from authors. We are on the same team.”
The defense of freedom of expression, open to the question of 41 authors and even more: President of Aie (Italian Publishers Association) Innocenzo Cipolletta he said he was angry and apologized for the case of the excommunication of Roberto Saviano. After a letter from 41 authors (almost all invited and participated in the Italian program Roots in the future at Buchmesse, from 16 to 20 October) who asked to be able to speak in Frankfurt about “political interference in cultural fields”, and after the speech of 24 June from the IEA, in which the proposal for a discussion on the subject was accepted (on 25 June a similar, but joint, letter was sent by the IEA and Buchmesse to one of the association’s managers, Paolo Giordano), the question is to understand what are the precise answers to the questions of the group of authors. in.
Reached on 25 June by «Corriere», Cipolletta replied: «First of all I want to show that there is not, cannot be, conflict between publishers and writers because we are all on the same side. For the publisher, the authors are the creators of their own work and for the authors we are the medium through which they reach the public. So we have an intimate connectionif they feel discomfort and anxiety, these are discomfort and anxiety that we ourselves feel.”
Cipolletta raises some real issues: “When the episode of the censorship of Antonio Scurati was on TV, we as publishers immediately made a statement to announce that we are against all censorship and we are in favor of writers being able to express themselves freely. I would like to clarify: it is the IEA line that has always been done, even when I am not there. I remember that the IEA fought when the provisions on wiretapping and defamation were discussed, which in some ways put a gag on newspapers and books: and we took a position in favor of both newspapers and authors “. He recalls the tradition of Aie in this sense, «which also has a global level, because even the European (Fep) and the international body (Ipa) of the publishers in which Aie sits and has an influential role has always fought for freedom of expression. . There can be no conflict between us and the writers on this: I repeat, the anxiety they feel at this time is the same as we feel.”
Is there no danger that the two Italians will arrive in Frankfurt? Cipolletta dismissed it: «The writers we invite are part of our system and in our system they will be able to say what they want. Some of them have asked for a specific event to talk about the problems of the relationship between politics and writers and freedom of expression, and we will find a way to include this topic within the Italian system, because we await their proposals. So we say yes, across the board. “
Other aspects of letter 41 are very stable, in particular on the anger born from the exclusion of Roberto Saviano. “I tried to explain – continued Cipolletta – why the writer has not been taken into consideration, and this explanation is considered a task. Well, if by government office we mean that we follow the path that is clear, that is what we do: that is, we always follow the path through the IEA, where among other things I have been president for a few months.” Cipolletta explained that in the preparation of the sports, the AIE asked the publishers of the authors they want to insert, without adding or removing names, «but only with the selection of proposals to note the types and types of publishers, so that no one forgets “.
“This – he continued – also happened in Frankfurt, as the developers presented more than 300 proposals: and Saviano was not there. We did not add him, just as we did not add other names, and I Sorry about this, because Saviano is a very important feature. And I also apologize if we didn’t think of it. But there is no desire for discrimination, just follow a pattern». And he also said: “Have we been too loyal to this kind of approach? Maybe yes. Let’s take advantage of the mistake we made, I’m sorry, I apologize.”
In recent days, contacts with the Frankfurt Fair have continued: the same Jürgen Boos said on May 25 that the IEA and Buchmesse “sent a joint personal response” to the group of 41 signatories, in which they underlined that «the main purpose of the Frankfurter Buchmesse and the IEA is to provide a platform for international meetings, for a multitude of different voices and perspectives. Fair and AIE will make sure to give space to the meetings requested by the authors. Buchmesse emphasized that “the general objective is to give Italian authors the best possible visibility”.
Cipolletta confirmed: “They are completely compatible with us. On Monday we have long periods of sharing, we responded to Paolo Giordano’s letterand we discussed that matter with Jürgen Boos and his colleagues.”
Another objection raised by the group of 41 authors is the absence, in the system, of comparisons with “European and international colleagues”. IEA President: “I apologize for something there too. At the press conference (on May 28, ndr) we do not intend to give the program, but we decide to give (as requested by Buchmesse) a list of presentations of Italian authors. We are now completing the program, and it also includes German or international people, both in the role of moderators and as reference people. We will also consider the request that the signatories of the letter have to have greater presence of European people».
The program will be done around the middle of September, Cipolletta continues: «We are preparing together with Italian experts in German books, we have added Maria Carolina Foi, until recently the director of the Cultural Center of Berlin, as a consultant, to the job. of the company Exlibris, and therefore you will see that the program in September will have a large presence of foreigners. Let me say that though it is not exactly true that the programs of other countries are open to other authorseach country comes there and presents its own… however, if the demand is to have more people, we will do it.”
And now, to complete the proposals and new events requested by the authors, will you open a discussion table with the authors? Cipolletta concluded: “We have a constant dialogue with the authors, a person-to-person contact. Now some have made this idea, we come to accept and to develop, starting from the idea, an event to do. “Open table” seems excessive to me, authors and publishers are at the same table and not on separate tables: but we are open to proposals, absolutely. And if it is necessary to have some meetings, they will do it.”
June 26, 2024 (modified June 26, 2024 | 08:37)
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