Roberto Tumbarello, professional journalist, is currently correspondent of the Press Service of the Council of Europe in Italy. Graduated in Law at the University of Palermo, he studied political science at Cesare Alfieri and philosophy at Sapienza. After graduating from classical high school, he began to collaborate assiduously with the "Giornale di Sicilia". Immediately after graduation he moved to Naples with the prospect of being hired at the ´Napoli Notte ´. In 1965 he moved to Rome to work on 'Tempo' and then on 'Messaggero'. In 1968 he was hired as a member of the Palazzi publishing group and assigned to the Roman editorial staff of 'Tempo Illustrated' and 'Giovani', where he became a professional. In 1970 he also worked at 'Radio Montecarlo' as correspondent of Italy for the French news program and the programs in Italian. In 1974 he became chief carbonist of 'Tuttoquotidiano', a new electronic composition newspaper born in Cagliari. Two years later he returned to Rome as head of political services and parliamentary reporter for the Sardinian daily. Meanwhile, in 1975, on the eve of the civil war in Lebanon, he was the first Western journalist to interview Yasser Arafat, then a feared terrorist. In 1977 he was entrusted with the direction of the Milanese weekly leisure time Friday, Saturday and Sunday. In 1978, with the advent of private televisions, even before commercial networks were born, together with his brother Carlo, a brilliant journalist, he created 'Il Satellite, a television production company that produces programs for 40 broadcasters scattered throughout Italy. In the same year he was hired by the weekly Gente which assigned him to the Quirinale with the task of following the President of the Republic in his travels. Thanks to the bond of esteem and affection with Sandro Pertini, he enjoys the trust and sympathy of many heads of state and of John Paul II. In 1985 he was hired as a special correspondent for the weekly 'Oggi' which also uses him as a vaticanist, with the task of following the Pope in all his travels abroad. Expert in Third World problems, he has often been special envoy to South East Asia, the Middle East, Africa and South America. In 1984 he raises a press campaign in favor of a Sinhalese young woman accused of adultery in the United Arab Emirates and saves her from stoning. For his continuous dedication to the defense of human rights and his absolute political independence, the following year he obtained collaboration with the Council of Europe. In 1996 he took over the direction of the 'Giornale di Napoli' and the afternoon edition, 'Ultimissime'. The circulation of both the first and second daily newspapers tripled in the first eight months of operation. In 1998 he founded the afternoon newspaper 'Napoli Sera'. In February 2000 he created a communication and political analysis company.

Added Dec 19, 2013