Murder case brings 'Foxy Knoxy' infamy in Italy

ROME, Italy (CNN) -- The Italian media call her "Foxy Knoxy" and portray her as a "devil with an angel's face," and there are 11 Facebook pages dedicated to her, all in Italian

Amanda Knox, 21, is an American college student from Seattle, Washington, who is on trial for murder in Perugia, Italy. The case has given Knox almost pop star status there.

She was voted the top woman in an online "person of the year" poll by an Italian TV channel in December, beating out Carla Bruni, the Italian-born French first lady.

Seven of the 11 Facebook pages champion her innocence; four seem convinced that Knox is pure evil. A sampling of comments: "No to Amanda. No to her superstardom" ... "She's a sociopath" ..."Everyone is not sure if she is guilty or not and that she will lead us to a new existential awareness. Please shout with me your anger. ... Let's say no. Let's say Knox." Source

Palermo Missed Out On A Great Player - Oddo

Bayern Munich full back Massimo Oddo talked to Mediagol about his team-mate Ernesto Sosa, who had been close to joining Palermo, until problems with his passport halted the move. According to the World Cup winner, the Rosanero have missed out on a major player.

"Sosa is a player of absolute value," he said," he showed his talent when he played in Argentina, where he allowed his team to make a jump in quality with excellent performances, obtaining great results, and then he arrived here, in a great team like ours. Source

Fiat Cuts Profit Forecasts; No 2008 Dividend Planned

Jan. 22 (Bloomberg) -- Fiat SpA, poised to take a 35 percent stake in Chrysler LLC, cut its earnings forecast and said it won’t pay a dividend after fourth-quarter profit plunged as the recession hurt sales of its Punto cars and Iveco trucks.

Fiat, Italy’s biggest manufacturer, dropped 15 percent in Milan trading, a record decline, on concern the company may have to raise capital after debt rose. Net income fell to 163 million euros ($212 million) in the quarter from 570 million euros a year earlier, the Turin-based company said in a statement. Source

Italy tries to streamline bureaucracy

ROME: Italy, known for its unwieldy bureaucracy, is announcing ambitious plans to digitize government, school and law enforcement services over the next three years.

Premier Silvio Berlusconi unveiled the "E-Government 2012" measures Wednesday.

He said Italy is lagging far behind its European counterparts in reducing paperwork and bureaucracy by going online. As a result, public administration continues to run inefficiently. Continued

On Facebook, Sicilian Mafia Is a Hot Topic

ROME — Your college roommate is on Facebook. So are your cousins and colleagues and friends. But guess who else may find Facebook a great way to stay in touch?

Some people in Sicily who know a few things about networking.

In recent weeks, the Italian authorities have begun investigating Facebook discussion groups devoted to convicted Mafiosi, concerned that some members might be more than fans.

At the same time, a campaign calling on Facebook to remove pro-Mafia pages has been gaining momentum, while thousands of Facebook members have joined new anti-Mafia groups. Continued