Oliviero Toscani fired by Benetton after bridge collapse comments

Oliviero Toscani, the renowned Italian photographer who created Benetton's most iconic advertising campaigns since the 1980s, was fired on February 6, 2020, after making controversial remarks about the Morandi Bridge collapse. During a radio interview on RadioUno's 'Un giorno da pecora' on February 3, Toscani said, 'ma a chi interessa che caschi un ponte, smettiamola' ('but who cares if a bridge collapses, let's stop it'), referring to the August 14, 2019 tragedy that killed 43 people. The bridge was operated by Autostrade, a company in which the Benetton family held a major stake, making them morally responsible for lack of maintenance. The comments sparked outrage from Liguria governor Giovanni Toti, who launched the hashtag #ANointeressa, and Genoa mayor Marco Bucci, who reminded that the collapse matters to the victims and their families. Benetton Group, through president Luciano Benetton, issued a statement dissociating from Toscani's remarks and terminating their creative collaboration. Toscani apologized, saying he was 'umanamente distrutto' ('humanly destroyed') and claimed his words were taken out of context. The fallout may affect his professional projects, including a recent campaign with artist Maurizio Cattelan for Generali Assicurazioni and his participation in Parma 2020 Italian Capital of Culture events.