German and Italian journalists and cartoonists are to take part in a two-year-long initiative aimed at renewing good cultural relations between Italy and Germany.

Photo: bpb.de

What do Italians think of Germany? And how do Germans construct their images of Italy? A quick look at newspapers in both countries shows that prejudices and stereotypes have dampened mutual interest in each other’s country in recent years. Germany’s international cultural organisation, the Goethe Institute, has therefore launched a project aimed at presenting new images of wonder and discovery about each country. The project involves German and Italian newspaper publishers and broadcasting organisations, as well as individual journalists and cartoonists in both countries. It’s called: “Va bene?! La Germania in italiano. Italien auf Deutsch.“

The project involves a series of conferences, exchanges for journalists, joint reporting projects and a writing competition. Organisers say the aim of the project is for Italians and Germans to learn more, respectively, about each other through better, more considered media understanding and reporting.

Germany’s Federal Agency for Civic Education as well as Italian cultural institutes are also involved in the Goethe Institute project.