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NPR. This year marks the 400th anniversary of the death of the Italian artist Caravaggio, believed by many art lovers to be the greatest painter of all time. Rome, the city where he was both hailed and rejected, is hosting a major exhibition of masterpieces from all over the world showcasing the first of the bad-boy artists. (Read and listen the article by Silvia Poggioli)
ANSA. The Italian government sent a bill to parliament banning cosmetic breast surgery for under-18s in a bid to stem their rising popularity among Italian girls. The first measure of its kind in Europe, the bill would put a stop to all breast surgery for minors that has no medical basis. (Read the article)
ANSA.- The Mafia observes a strict "don't ask, don't tell" policy on homosexuals within their ranks, an Italian psychologist said Friday. "The Mafia is, on the surface, a ferociously homophobic institution," said Girolamo Lo Verso of the University of Palermo. (Read the article)
AFP. The Italian government has said it will support the head of the Bank of Italy as the next president of the European Central Bank and is denying reports of his role in financial deals that hid Greece's debt problems. (Read the article)
ANSA. Reports of graft and corruption more than doubled in 2009, the Italian Audit Court said Wednesday during the ceremonial opening of its judicial year. Judge Tullio Lazzaro, the court's chairman, described the phenomenon as a "malignant tumour" on the nation and said that the state lacked the "antibodies" necessary to fight it. (Read the article)
ANSA. Turin, February 17 - Italian coffee king Emilio Lavazza died in his native Turin Wednesday. He was 77. Lavazza took over the reins of the family firm in 1971 when his father Giuseppe died after helping grandfather and founder Luigi turn a 19th-century grocery store into a domestic and international powerhouse. (Read the article)
THE NEW YORK TIMES. For something like the 300th time, Mike Jaffe settled into Anthony Mancinelli’s chair on a recent Saturday for another haircut and another conversation. (Read the article)
AFP. The stabbing death of an Egyptian youth in Milan sparked fresh anti-immigration calls Sunday that were immediately slammed by the left-wing opposition ahead of regional elections in Italy. Roberto Calderoli, a minister of the anti-immigration Northern League, said the incident "confirmed that we are paying for a mistaken ideology of the past... the policy of open doors for all." (Read the article)
ANSA. Beppe Bigazzi, a food expert on La Prova del Cuoco (The Cooks' Challenge), enraged animal rights experts around the country when he gave advice on preparing ''tender, white cat meat'' in a portion of the show usually reserved for advice about nutrition. (Read the article)
ANSA. Thousands of pilgrims gathered in this northern Italian city before dawn on Monday, hoping for a rare glimpse of the bones of Padua's hugely popular patron, Saint Anthony. (Read the article)