Italy's leading news agency ANSA presented its popular annual photobook, Photoansa 2018, in Rome on Monday.
The book portrays a year full of events through stunning images that bring to life tragic and fascinating incidents, including the collapse of the Morandi bridge in Genoa, the Thai cave rescue, Macron's mounting struggles, and France's World Cup win, as well as interesting reforms like women being allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia.
The photos were selected according to their photojournalistic relevance - because they told a story, said the president of ANSA, Giulio Anselmi, speaking at the book presentation in Milan.
And some of the protagonists portrayed by ANSA attended the presentation at the Feltrinelli Foundation, including Genoa firefighters who saw images of their rescue efforts on August 14, when they rushed to help victims of the deadly disaster.
The August 14 collapse killed 43 people and caused the evacuation of many flats below the bridge.
Firefighter team chief Massimo Bartolini, who was among the first to arrive at the scene, said his colleagues are still working there to help families whose homes will be torn down to retrieve their possessions.
The operation should end by the end of this week.
"It was an extremely acute intervention that involved us from a technical-operational standpoint as well as a human one", said Genoa commander, Fabrizio Piccinini.
The March 4 elections and the birth of the League-M5S government are also portrayed in the book.
The book includes the "months of political confusion that is far from resolved", added Anselmi.
The opinion is in part shared by Alessandra Ghisleri, director of Euromedia Research, who is convinced that European elections in the spring will be "perfect to measure and understand what will happen next" and that at the moment the League is "sprinting" while the 5-Star Movement is "flailing".
The president of Italian insurance company Generali, Gabriele Galateri di Genola, expressed the wish that dialogue with Europe can bring "more stability for investors and citizens". The news reported, stressed ANSA editor-in-chief Luigi Contu, also aimed to show hope and the positive side of events.
This was the case of leading Italian golfer Francesco Molinari and the Ryder Cup, which Italy will host in 2022, as recalled by the director general of the project, Gian Paolo Montali.
Indeed ANSA CEO Stefano De Alessandri said he was "surprised" by ANSA's level of innovation in reporting the news.
Lombardy Governor Attilio Fontana, a surprise candidate for the position after Roberto Maroni stepped back, said 2018 was an "overwhelming" year - "I didn't think I would experience it". And ANSA, he added, reported the news in a "balanced" way.
The president of the regional council, Alessandro Fermi, indeed said ANSA is the "notary of the news", at the presentation attended, among others, by prefect Renato Saccone, police commissioner Marcello Cardona, manager Matteo Marzotto and top security officials.
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