Here in Italy we’re in the middle of a media blackout. That means you can’t mention anyone by name until the regional elections at the end of the month. So what were once lively televised debates have become censored affairs full of, “Don’t say that!” and the bleeping out of certain names. Of course, they get around the censors by calling Berlusconi “The Sultan,” or some such euphemism. Kinoppete suggests things were actually better in the USSR circa 1976: