Diana De Feo, the wife of Emilio Fede, who died at 84, was an Italian journalist also known for her commitment to politics as a Senator of the People of Freedom for the 16th legislature. Emilio Fede told the Corriere:
He fought to the end with enormous courage. I didn’t expect her to be missing now: I was about to join her, from Milan to Naples, to celebrate my ninetieth birthday with her
Who was Diana De Feo
Diana De Feo, born in Turin on March 9, 1937 and died in Naples on June 23, 2021. The father, Italo De Feo, was a historian, a journalist and a well-known Italian politician at the head of the press office of the National Liberation Committee. In 1965 she married fellow journalist Emilio Fede. Two daughters were born from the marriage: Sveva and Simona. Her private life has always been kept away from the spotlight and gossip, despite being overwhelmed by the scandal that saw Emilio Fede convicted of aiding and abetting prostitution in the “Ruby bis” process.
The journalistic and political career
As a journalist, he worked for seven years with the TG1, taking part in the editorial staff of “Cronache del Lavoro e dell’Economia”. She worked as a special correspondent of TG1 for the columns of art and culture.
From 1976 to 1996, Diana De Feo collaborated with Flora Favilla to the TG1 section “Almanac of the day after“, Edited daily by Giorgio Ponti.
In the 2008 political elections at the invitation of Silvio Berlusconi she was nominated as a senator in the Campania Region on the Popolo della Libertà lists, being elected senator of the XVI legislature. However, he will not run again in Parliament in the new political elections of 2013.
Private life and scandals
Diana De Feo is co-owner of Villa Lucia, the historic estate in the Vomero district of Naples. Following a complaint by Italia Nostra, in 2006 the police discovered illegal works in progress, affix the seals to the villa and open a criminal case against Diana. Although the villa was bound by the 1939 law on monumental assets, internal and external works had been started without any authorization from the Superintendency.
De Feo’s private life, always kept as confidential as possible, was overwhelmed by a second scandal in 2011, due to the husband Emilio Fede. In January 2011, the journalist was investigated by the prosecutor for induction and aiding and abetting of prostitution, together with Silvio Berlusconi, Lele Mora and Nicole Minetti, on the “Ruby case”, based on the evidence represented by an anonymous letter, later published on the front page of two newspapers, and a briefcase that he would take to Switzerland. For this he will be definitively sentenced to 4 years and 7 months in prison.