Imagine the furore if George W. Bush, US president, published details of a possible merger between Citigroup and HSBC, mentioned during a private meeting with Citigroup's chief executive. Such meetings happen all over the world - industrialists often want to discuss sensitive mergers with politicians - but for a politician to release details would be flabbergasting. Yet that is exactly what Romano Prodi, Italy's prime minister, has done with Telecom Italia. In the process, he has warned off foreign investors and undermined his own authority.

This week TI announced plans to split itself into three, a move that could lead to the sale of its mobile and network infrastructure operations. If the company does look for buyers for its mobile arm, it would probably lead to a foreign takeover, an idea repugnant to Italy's economic nationalists. Because Mr Prodi had met with Marco Tronchetti Provera, TI's chairman, the press speculated that Mr Prodi knew about and condoned the break-up. In response, Mr Prodi's office published details of those meetings, during which Mr Prodi was told of discussions between TI and foreign investors including General Electric, Time Warner, and Rupert Murdoch.