President Rejects Bill Said to Favor Premier

Italian President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi rejected a controversial media bill that critics said was tailor-made for Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s media empire. Ciampi said he was sending the bill, which relaxes limits on media ownership, back to parliament for further work. It was the first time Ciampi refused to sign a bill into law for anything other than budget reasons.

Critics say the measure favors the Berlusconi family’s holding company Fininvest, which controls Italy’s largest media empire, and would enable it to extend its considerable reach.