Corriere TV: Spotlight

Another quick video stream to watch online is Corriere TV's Spotlight, a short video segment where a famous person is interviewed and asked a series of questions. The interviewer is not seen and only the responses to the questions is heard. It's a sort of conversation without the conversation, so to speak.  There are several of these interviews with various people in Italian politics, film, literature, etc.  They are a great way to connect with important and influential people in Italy and hear their thoughts.

Repubblica Domani

A comment that I hear often from readers of my blog is that it is difficult for them to listen to a sixty-minute podcast or to watch 45-60 minutes of Italian television. I "feel" their pain -- it's difficult to find the time in the day. It can also be frustrating to listen to something and not understand much and become easily discouraged.

And I present to you Repubblica Domani. This is a short video that is done by the staff of La Repubblica which is a meeting between various correspondents, reporters and journalists that run the newsroom. They do their best to go over the main important news points of the day, covering not only events happening outside Italy but also domestic news, political affairs, the economy, sport and culture. The program is on the short side and varies between 5 to 10 minutes. At the start of each video, there's a summary of what will be discussed with photos so it helps to give you some context of what you will be hearing.

La Repubblica is also one of the few "independent" news outlets in Italy which generally does a good job providing balanced and fair coverage.

Below I've embedded the episode from Monday, May 24, 2010. To see the latest episode as well as the current list of episodes, click here.

Corriere della Sera: Corriere TV

It's not surprising that newspapers in Italy are providing more multimedia content. CorriereTV is a selection of news videos that one can watch and listen to on the Corriere della Sera web site, one of Italy's leading newspapers.

There are dozens of channels, and viewers can watch news stories about events in Italy, international events, economic news, cinema, and more!! It's an easy site to navigate, the videos have great clarity, and the audio files are crisp and clear. There is also a section called Appuntamenti in which various staff of the newspaper do videos on special topics. The Italian journalist and writer, Beppe Severigni, does a show called Punto Italians, and there are segments on health and film by other correspondents of the paper. There are also Telegiornali segments on general news and a Telegiornale segment dedicated to economics and business (i.e., stock market, business news, etc.).

What I like about this site is that the news stories are a decent length (just a couple of minutes or less, although some of the Appuntamenti are longer) which is a great way to practice your listening skills without drowning in a sea of words and expressions you might not know.

AnnoZero

If you're looking for some lively debate "all'italiana", then check out a very popular RAI television show called AnnoZero - a program which brings together guests from all aspects of Italian politics and current events for lively debates on current events and important issues. This is a great program, and previous episodes can be watched online or live on the web site, and it is one of the few programs that those outside of Italy can watch through RAI's web site without having to be in the country.

Last week's program (on February 5, 2009) discussed a controversial law that seeks to limit wiretaps on telephones and to punish those who publish such converations in the press. The debate proved to be quite "lively". An archive of past shows can also be watched online. The sound and picture quality are quite good, and you're bound to learn a lot watching these programs. Not only will you get a good "language workout" but you'll learn a lot about issues facing Italy and Italians at the same time!

Telegiornale -- TV News

The news in Italy can be easily watched online and is a great way to improve your Italian while at the same time keep abreast of current events in Italy and the world. Italy has several news broadcasts -- Tg1 broadcasts the news several times a day, with the first newscast starting at 800am (30 min. Monday through Friday) then again at 1:30pm (30 min.), 5pm (10 min) and then the last edition usually comes at 8:00pm (another 30 min).

There are several teaser editions of the news that follow in the morning and throughout the day that provide lead-ins for various stories and are usually only a few minutes in length. Sometimes these shorter editions are the best ways to practice your listening skills as there's not a lot to take in and are short enough to promote learning.

Tg1 is a good site because not only can you watch the various news broadcasts throughout the day, but there are also various "channels" on the web site where you can view special stories and more in-depth reporting on various other topics, such as culture, crime, international events, economy and more.

There are several other news broadcasts: Tg2, Tg3, Tg Parlamento (with all the news from the Senate and Chambers), Tg Regionale (where you can view local news broadcasts from all over Italy), and Tg Sport (with all the latest news updates in the sports world).

You're bound to find something interesting on any of these sites!

Sites:

• Rai.it News Portal - http://www.rai.it/dl/portal/news.html
• Tg1
• Tg2
• Tg3
• Tg Parlamento
  
• Tg Regionale
• Tg Sport
  

Passaparola

Passaparola is an initiative of Beppe Grillo and Marco Travaglio. Each week starting at 2pm Italian time, Marco Travaglio talks about the political situation in Italy. Travaglio and Grillo are two of the harshest critics (and rightly so) of the Italian political class and the Italian government which borders at times on the ineffectual. Travaglio is one of Italy's most celebrated journalists. He made waves a few months ago on the program Che tempo che fa, and it seems that now he has his own program hosted online.

Right now, the transmission is on break for the summer holidays but plans to return in September.

The good thing about these podcasts are:

1. You can watch the videos anytime you want as a podcast through Itunes or you RSS feed reader.
2. All of the podcasts feature subtitles so if you don't understand something, you can read as you follow along with Signor Travaglio while he talks. You can also follow along with the transcript of the video if you have trouble seeing the subtitles.

I recommend this program/video because it gives you a look into the Italian political situation. Travaglio is known for his honest journalism and straight talk. And now you can practice your Italian while learning something important about Italian culture at the same time.

Exit with Ilaria D'Amico

Exit, a program of La7, is a great way to give your ears a workout.

Exit is a current affairs program hosted by Ilaria D'Amico. The show tackles current events and the guests typically are well-placed officials and persons in Italian society. The show brings together guests who take different stands on certain issues, and then questions are posed and discussion ensues.

I really enjoy this program because it touches upon some really hotbed issues facing Italy -- trash concerns of Naples, food safety, immigration, politics...among many others. Many of the past episodes can be viewed online, and Exit also has a blog where you can leave comments after watching an episode.

You also get a good mix of accents and ways of speaking, and it's a great way to learn new words. This is a great program for the Italian learner at any level and an even better way to stay connected to Italian current events and culture.

Che Tempo Che Fa

Che Tempo Che Fa is sort of like the late show in the United States (with David Letterman or Jay Leno, etc). Hosted by Fabio Fazio, he interviews various guests from Italy and abroad about things that they are doing, things that they have written or things that they have said.

The show recently was host to a bit of scandal when Marco Travaglio was a guest on May 10th. Travaglio made some comments about a certain Italian politician and his link to the mafia and organized crime. People from both sides of the spectrum weighed into the debate and leads to further criticism that the media in Italy is free to do as it wishes without the government chasing their heels. More disturbing, at least in my opinion, was that the next day, the show's host and producer both apologized to the audience leaving one to wonder how much pressure the government exerted on the show "to force" such an apology. Why should the host and producers of the show apologize for the beliefs of another?

Anyway, whatever you may think, the show is entertaining and informative. You can search the show's archive for specific interviews with specific people (the one with Roberto Saviano is worth watching). Some of the show's episodes are available as a podcast. The streaming video is quite clear and the sound quality is good. Will probably require at least an intermediate level of Italian to follow, but no matter what your level, you're bound to learn something new.

PS--If you want to watch the Travaglio episode but it becomes deleted, check out Youtube.

Rai News 24 - Streaming Live on your Desktop

If you're stuck at work for 8-9 a day like I am, but you don't want to give up practicing your Italian for some part of the day, check out Rai News 24 (in diretta).

Think of this an the internet version of an Italian CNN -- 24 news streaming on your PC. You can listen and/or watch the news (there's a streaming video and audio feed) while you work if you're at your desk.

To the right of the main video player is a list of the important stories of the day, which you can watch as videos. So if you tuned in after an interesting story, just click on the link, and the video will load in the same player as that of the live news. To get back to the live news, just refresh the page.

The great thing about this live feed are:

• There's nothing to download.
• It's always on (although I've noticed there are times of the day when it doesn't work, usually late at night and during the afternoon around lunch time in Italy)
• You get a mix of different presenters which represent the entire country, thus getting an exposure to different accents and regions of Italy
  
• News presenters tend to be very good speakers with good diction
• Stories will give you a good idea of what's going on in Italy
  

One downside is that the live feed does require a good deal of bandwidth. It might take a few minutes if you're using a wireless connection for the feed to get started. If you're connected via ethernet, you shouldn't notice any slowdowns.