Rai opens internal probe into Pierluigi Diaco over BellaMà conduct claims

The allegations

Selvaggia Lucarelli's newsletter Vale Tutto, published on 11 November, gathers testimonies from former contestants and collaborators of BellaMà, the afternoon programme on Rai 2 that Pierluigi Diaco devised and hosts. They describe an atmosphere of verbal aggression, intimidation and threats to professional careers, with insults, humiliations over minor episodes, jokes with sexual undertones and demands for apologies on bended knees. The most detailed account comes from a young former contestant, given the pseudonym Vanessa, who says a pleasant start turned into a series of verbal violence and humiliations in front of the whole team. Lucarelli's reconstruction places those episodes before at least 50 people in the studio. According to the account, Diaco also hinted at an ambiguous relationship with a senior Rai executive, and women were the most frequent targets. The newsletter includes an audio recording made during an off-air moment, and Lucarelli says she received the material before the Ravagnani case broke.

Rai's response

Viale Mazzini has answered by opening an internal inquiry. In a note, the broadcaster said:

“the Rai has decided to launch an internal investigation aimed at verifying the veracity and soundness of the elements that have emerged.”

The note says the inquiry is meant to establish what happened while protecting the dignity and safety of workers, collaborators and guests in public-service productions. Adnkronos reports that BellaMà will air as usual on 11 November with Diaco as host, after online rumours of a possible suspension of the host or the show. According to Adnkronos, Rai is carefully assessing the matter. Fanpage.it reports that the company is weighing either replacing Diaco or suspending the programme, and that neither option is ruled out. The note gives no timetable for the inquiry and names no outcome.

The Ravagnani case and earlier warnings

The controversy began with an interview aired on Tuesday 3 November on BellaMà, in which Diaco pressed the former priest Alberto Ravagnani, now a contestant on Ballando con le Stelle, about his intimate life and sexual orientation. On Friday 6 November Rai apologised publicly in a note from Angelo Mellone, director of Day Time Entertainment, who called the tone "non adeguati ed eccessivi". On Saturday 7 November, on Ballando con le Stelle, Ravagnani told Milly Carlucci that he had already been disturbed by things that happened in the dressing room before going live, without giving details. Diaco responded in a statement saying he had met the ex-priest to explain how the interview would run, and added:

“The allusions about approaches and advances offend me.”

Fanpage.it reports that Rai then sent Diaco a formal reprimand letter under its ethics code, also citing a roughly 12-minute telephone interview he gave to Le Iene without authorisation, since company rules require approval for appearances on other programmes. The same outlet cites a 2025 reprimand of Sigfrido Ranucci for a phone call to Piazzapulita as precedent. Lucarelli also recalls a 2023 episode in which Diaco rebuked a female opinionist on air for saying "che palle", a clip that circulated widely.

What remains open

Rai has said the inquiry will verify the testimonies and audio, but no deadline or outcome has been announced. Whether Diaco stays in the job depends on the company's assessment, and as of 11 November neither a suspension nor a replacement has been confirmed. The newsletter's claims come from former contestants and collaborators, and the articles cite Diaco's statement only in relation to the Ravagnani interview. BellaMà is scheduled to continue with Diaco as host while the inquiry runs.