Almost a year in the direction of RSI, a considerable commitment given the difficulty in which the media find themselves today. Have you ever regretted it?
(Without hesitation). «Absolutely never, on the contrary… I am very satisfied, especially for the projects we have already completed. When I arrived there were many issues on the table, but we immediately took action, guaranteeing maximum transparency to our collaborators, our collaborators and our public. For this reason, we have given priority to unavoidable cuts, not wanting the staff to live with bated breath. In parallel we have reformed two departments and changed our attitude towards the outside. The message of the change had to be clear. I know that some had wagered that I would not have stayed more than three months at the top of CSR (smiles), but I'm still here and, as mentioned, it's a choice that I would make immediately ».
You always speak in the plural ...
"This is inevitable because to manage a company like CSR you need to be a close-knit team, I speak in the plural because my work is linked to a group of trusted and competent people".
When you talk about a working group it is inevitable to think of Matteo Pelli, whom you recalled in RSI ...
«I would like to be clear about this choice, also because I personally see it as an act of courage to bring a popular character like Matteo back to RSI. I chose Matteo because I was sure that the company would benefit. We have known each other forever, but I had no particular bond, in the last fifteen years I must have seen him twice ... ours is a relationship that dates back to childhood. So, I repeat, I asked Matteo Pelli to return to the company because I consider him an extremely valid person on a professional level and unique in the Ticino panorama ».
There have been people who questioned your training before you arrived, convinced that you should have learned everything from scratch ...
«Absolutely not, because for years I have been involved in the development of projects and I have an entrepreneurial spirit that has characterized my work. My job is to be a manager in the world of culture, that is to produce content and distribute it. The director does not do the program, so I didn't have to learn a new job, if anything I had to get to know a new company ».
Another novelty is your non-connection with politics
«There is an open and frank dialogue with politics. Dialogue on everything, because mistakes are made every day, but what we must preserve is independence. On a personal level, as is normal, there are speculations about my political affiliation, but it is an aspect that I find amusing, also because over the years there have been three parties that have asked me to stand as a candidate and I have always refused ».
Let's pause for a moment on the critical aspect, because I don't think anyone likes being a target. How do you deal with them?
“If I couldn't stand criticism I would never be able to do this job (smiles). You listen to criticism and try to extrapolate the elements that can lead you to an improvement, if instead they are instrumental ... you understand and ignore them. But I would like to add something that is part of my character and that I really don't like: the attacks on the work of my colleagues and my colleagues, especially if they come from within. As a director I know perfectly well that I am called to respond to criticism towards myself and towards the company, but when one speaks badly of colleagues and colleagues, not respecting their work ... this is not for me. After all, let's go back to the team discussion: CSR must become a great team if it wants to face and overcome future challenges, so if there is something wrong, it is better to say it immediately and continue in serenity. On the other hand, my door is always open and not only in a figurative sense ».
We talked about staff cuts, closeness to employees and also transparency, an aspect that has actually been lacking in the past, not only within CSR, but also towards the public ...
"Pretending nothing is not part of my mentality, projects must be faced as well as problems, even uncomfortable ones, let's think of the internal investigations of the company ... I wanted them to be in-depth, that there were no time constraints for the investigations of the lawyers, but once concluded, the measures related to corporate culture must be rapidly introduced. The cuts were painful and as mentioned earlier inevitable, we have lost 150 million francs of advertising nationwide in the last four years and therefore the situation has required corrections. On all these issues it is important to ensure maximum internal transparency, CSR is a creative company and must have collaborators who feel good, this is my priority and only in this way will we have a well-finished and successful product ".
We talked about staff cuts, closeness to employees and also transparency, an aspect that has actually been lacking in the past, not only within CSR, but also towards the public ...
"Pretending nothing is not part of my mentality, projects must be faced as well as problems, even uncomfortable ones, let's think of the internal investigations of the company ... I wanted them to be in-depth, that there were no time constraints for the investigations of the lawyers, but once concluded, the measures related to corporate culture must be rapidly introduced. The cuts were painful and as mentioned earlier inevitable, we have lost 150 million francs of advertising nationwide in the last four years and therefore the situation has required corrections. On all these issues it is important to ensure maximum internal transparency, CSR is a creative company and must have collaborators who feel good, this is my priority and only in this way will we have a well-finished and successful product ".
So your properties are mainly linked to the well-being of the staff ...
«… And the program offer. The product - together with exemplary management - must always be ahead of everything, the rest is functional, this is the mentality I want to bring into CSR. We will win all the challenges that await us with the program and with the proximity of the public ».
I guess you are preparing for big changes ...
«It is inevitable, also because we are slowly leaving linear use, so we will no longer talk about television, but about a large or small screen - which can be a mobile phone - and each of us will create a tailor-made use. The challenge now is how to adapt our work to this epochal change. Own production will become more and more important, live shows, special evenings, being there live, in short, everything that other platforms cannot offer to our audience. This does not mean falling into regionalism, but being an added value in the global offer ».
The intent is also to win over new audiences ...
“Yes, but not to the south, because the question of rights is complicated. What we want to do is look beyond the Gotthard, we are a national television and for Italian-speaking Switzerland it is important to maintain an identity of its own which must be shared with the rest of Switzerland. We must not be shy or have complexes, we are a minority, it is true, but we have all the potential to actively contribute to national identity in its diversity ».
Let's get back to you, were you born and raised in Locarno?
«I spent my childhood above all with my grandparents in Bignasco, in the Maggia Valley, they were very beautiful years and I certainly grew up as a non-citizen child (he smiles). This is because my mom was starting to have a job where there were security protocols and therefore she preferred that I be quiet at her parents' house. When I grew up I lived with her for a few years and then I studied at the Papio in Ascona, while I did her University in Lausanne. What to say? I was a boy like everyone else ».
And have you never thought about studying law?
"That was the only stake I had set myself, I would never have studied law so as not to enter the logic of the son of ... but in the end these dynamics take over anyway, so I followed my passion and I graduated in literature".
I didn't want to talk about your mom, but after what you told me, I have to ask you a question: what is it like to be Carla del Ponte's son?
«I have had a stimulating life, I have been lucky enough to meet and get to know stimulating people. Then on the other hand I grew up with my grandparents, even if they never made me miss anything. You know ... when we talked about criticism and how I experience attacks ... I've always lived indirectly so I'm used to it. However, even though my mom was around the world every night she called me and this made me feel like a normal child, she never made things easier for me, in short, she never picked up the phone to help me and this is good " (laughs).
And your dad ...
"My dad tells me every now and then laughing that in the media it seems that I don't have a father, in any case he remarried and had another son, my brother."
Married, two children still young, eight and nine years old, a job without timetables, you still manage to find some free time ...
"In this first year a little, but it was clear at this stage of my mandate, but I really try to take that indispensable space to dedicate myself to my family and a few bike rides".
Are you happy to be back in Ticino or do you miss the big cities ...
«Now I live in Comano and I like it very much as a municipality, also because in a few minutes I am at work and my family is happy. I think that Ticino has great potential and that it is an interesting canton, it should just learn to make the most of its strengths. Every now and then my impression, as well as in other parts of the world, is that there is a passive acceptance. We should all be a little more proactive and proud, this would also lead to speeding up projects in favor of the region ».
This also for the cultural offer?
«The cultural aspect is complex, because the cultural offer of Italian-speaking Switzerland is sometimes too wide compared to the population and there is no real coordination, so there is a risk of having many events and little public. We don't have to create anything new, we have to pamper and enhance what we have, for example the LAC… it has great potential but it needs ambition, support and the desire to get involved, even on an international level ».
But how can you always be so proactive ...
"On the one hand I think I am so character-wise, on the other I know that every day has its own story, that you have to know how to adapt, never give up and fight for what you believe in. Today the market is constantly evolving and the fact of having shown that it is possible to change a radio program schedule in a month and a half gives me the strength to continue in this direction. We must stop thinking that everything is definitive, this is not my message, what I mean is: change, observe and modify, adapt, nothing is ever forever. Let us remember that everyone is wrong, it is the reactivity of how to correct the important aspect ».
