Marco Giusti reflects on Striscia la notizia's legacy and its kinship with Blob

In a personal essay on Artribune, Marco Giusti recounts the origins and cultural impact of Antonio Ricci's Striscia la notizia, the long-running Italian satirical news program on Canale 5. Giusti, a film critic and co-creator of the Rai 3 show Blob, draws parallels between the two programs, both born in the late 1980s as counter-information and anti-spectacle. He describes a Ligurian brotherhood of intellectuals—including Ricci, Enrico Ghezzi, and Carlo Freccero—shaped by Situationist ideas and a shared disdain for traditional journalism. Giusti details Ricci's early career as an author for Beppe Grillo and his move to Mediaset, where Striscia la notizia ran for 38 years. The show featured fake journalists Ezio Greggio and Raffaele Pisu, later joined by many others, and introduced the mascot Gabibbo. Giusti notes that while Blob was more militant and cinematic, Striscia was a masterful blend of entertainment and political commentary. He reflects on the 46 rules Ricci outlined in his book, and questions whether the program is truly closing, as rumors suggest.