Short clothes tears! Journalist who ridiculed 1.60 meter Giorgia Meloni because of her height, must pay her €5,000 in damages

An Italian journalist must pay Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni €5,000 in damages over “defamatory” social media posts ridiculing her height.

In a recent court ruling, Milan-based Giulia Cortese has been ordered to pay €5,000 (£4,210) in damages to the Prime Minister for defamatory comments posted on X and Facebook.

In addition, Ms Cortese was given a suspended fine of €1,200 for what the judge described as ‘body shaming’ of Meloni in two separate tweets.

The lawsuit followed a conversation between the journalist and the prime minister in which he called the prime minister a “little woman” and said: “I can’t even see you.”

Responding to the ruling, Ms Cortese criticised the Italian government, pointing to a “serious problem with freedom of expression and journalistic dissent”.

Ms Cortese and Meloni first clashed in October 2021, when the prime minister’s far-right Brothers of Italy party was still in opposition, reports BBC news.

At the time, Ms. Cortese posted an edited image on X (formerly known as Twitter) showing Meloni standing in front of a bookshelf containing a framed photo of fascist dictator Benito Mussolini.

Meloni responded to the image on Facebook, calling it “of unprecedented seriousness” and announcing that she would take legal action.

Ms Cortese subsequently removed the image, acknowledging that it was not authentic but accusing Meloni of orchestrating a “media pillory” against her.

In response, she repeated the comment about the “little woman” and said the Facebook post only emphasized her small stature.

She later said in a separate message, externally: ‘You don’t scare me, Giorgia Meloni. After all, you’re only 1.2 m (3 ft 9 in) tall. I can’t even see you.’

According to Italian media, the prime minister is 1.63 meters tall.

Ms Cortese was acquitted of wrongdoing for posting the first image, but her subsequent tweets were deemed defamatory by the court, ultimately leading to her conviction.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (left), who is 1.73m tall, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni (right), who is 1.60m tall, walk outside the summit of the European Political Community (EPC).

Meloni (front, far left) poses with other leaders during a family photo at the European Political Community meeting at Blenheim Palace in Woodstock in July

US President Joe Biden, Giorgia Meloni and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg pose for a photo during the 75th NATO anniversary summit in July

Ms Cortese said in a Facebook post: ‘You don’t scare me, Giorgia Meloni. After all, you’re only 1.2m (3ft 9in) tall. I can’t even see you’

Responding to the ruling in Case X, Ms Cortese criticised the Italian government for its position on freedom of expression and journalistic dissent.

She compared the situation to that in Hungary under Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and highlighted the challenges faced by independent journalists in Italy.

She added: ‘These are bad times for independent journalists and opinion makers. Let’s hope for better days. We are not giving up!’

Ms Cortese, who has the right to appeal the ruling, also said she was proud of her Italian heritage and condemned what she described as a “horrible and shameful government”.

Meanwhile, Meloni’s lawyer announced that any damages awarded would be donated to charity.

This follows hidden footage showing members of far-right leader Meloni’s youth wing giving the fascist salute and chanting “Sieg heil” in June.