Ciancio sells newspaper La Sicilia to Palella Holdings

There had been talk for some time of the Ciancio Sanfilippo family's desire to sell, not dispose of, the daily newspaper La Sicilia, a historic garrison of information especially in eastern Sicily. The Catania newspaper was founded on 15 March 1945 by Domenico Sanfilippo, Mario Ciancio Sanfilippo's uncle, who as editor made it an authoritative daily at the centre of a constellation of businesses, not only editorial ones. Thus the transfer of the daily newspaper La Sicilia to Palella Holdings, the family office of the Italian-American entrepreneur Salvatore Palella, a 30-year-old businessman known for having launched and brought to success Helbiz and who in February bought Wash Out (specialising in the digital management and maintenance of vehicles, offering services to both private individuals and corporate fleets) from Telepass.

Palella is originally from Acireale (Catania) but lives in New York where he founded his first company some ten years ago. And it is this young man from the Aci who puts his signature to the 'new beginning' of a newspaper that over the years has hosted the signatures of great journalists and trained generations of reporters. An undisputed historical, economic, social and political value whose creator was undoubtedly Mario Ciancio, the protagonist of an effervescent editorial season in our country up to the top of Fieg. "Eight decades full of satisfaction and difficulties, always overcome with realism and hard work, a great group of women and men who day after day knew how to inform the Sicilians. It was, above all, a pact with the readers: to offer honest, independent information, anchored to the facts and open to comparison,' says Domenico Ciancio, Mario's son and now co-editor of the newspaper (which he will continue to do). This newspaper changes ownership but does not deny anything of what has been built, it will continue to defend democracy, an asset to be protected at all times, today and tomorrow. I will continue to work on the 'newspaper' as I have done throughout my professional life, thanking that I had a great teacher, my father'.

Not much is yet known about the value of the operation (for reasons of confidentiality, it has not been disclosed), but enough is known to understand that Palella's Holding not only gets the entire package of Domenico Sanfilippo editore Spa and the shareholding in Ansa, but also the Centrale del Latte di Catania with its 22,000 square metres of industrial archaeology destined to be transformed into a publishing campus and start-up incubator. The newspaper's new beginning also includes the relocation of the editorial office to an Art Nouveau building in Corso Italia, in the heart of Catania, renovated according to green criteria: La Sicilia is thus leaving the historic building in Viale Odorico da Pordenone, for years a meeting place and destination for powerful people from all latitudes. "This," says Antonello Piraneo, an outstanding journalist of the newspaper where he grew professionally to the top at a difficult time, "is the new building. The foundation, the consolidation in the city of departure, the growth in the other provinces, the hold - against everything and everyone - are the four seasons that we have known and that we have made known to you, dear readers. The fifth begins today with the change of ownership, and it is that of a new horizon, of another future, of a professional challenge appropriate to the moment, therefore important'.

Among the relaunch projects are a completely revamped app, thematic podcasts, bilingual newsletters, and a strengthened social editorial staff to dialogue with the millions of Sicilians living abroad: this is how the 'Sicilia' brand, one of the most globally recognised geographical brands, is transformed into an international media platform. "I chose to buy 'La Sicilia' because I believe that the first step to building a future is a fair communication: free, open, transversal, positive. Because it is with positivity, with vision and with courage that agreements are closed, investments are attracted and wealth is created,' says Palella. 'Not a return, but a beginning. Because I believe - indeed, I know - that building today means giving concrete hope to the next generations'.