ABSTRACT
Journalist A leading member of the generation that fought in the Resistance as young men, Bocca began his journalistic apprenticeship with the party paper of Giustizia e Liberià Justice and Liberty). After an initial sojourn in Turin he moved to Milan, where he remained. His investigative articles for Il Giorno in the early 1960s established his reputation as a new breed of journalist bent on discovering the real Italy of unbridled capitalism and social malaise. He became a regular columnist for L’Europeo and then for La Repubblica and L’Espresso. His politics made him an uncomfortable figure for both the ruling Christian Democrats (see DC) and for the Italian Communist Party (see PCI). His Palmiro Togliatti (1973) stressed the Stalinism of this leader, while his Il caso 7 aprile (1980) attacked the distortions of the Italian system of justice resulting from its battle against terrorism. Freedom of speech and opinion remained Bocca’s watchwords. His Il provincial (1991) provides autobiographical insights, but his books tend to be extended versions of his more succinct newspaper articles.
