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After carefully reviewing the newspaper and checking the wiki, I agree that the clue most likely points to hanging or something related to it (noose, strangulation). It's somewhat reminiscent of the clue from the previous Mafia game about being buried alive... I don't believe it's described so simply just for effect. Regarding the headline and the mention of intellectuals with their questions, I couldn't find any other explanation besides it being a reference to Balzac. Also, considering that there's nothing in the newspaper text that suggests Grande was killed, I still believe Balzac was the killer.
I've been looking into the hanging clue, but so far, all the connections seem to lead to something like what Ment has. I'll keep digging. For now, I'm adding Neiru and Master to the list of suspects.
While I was writing this, I had an idea to try searching through the Tarot cards – the Hanged Man, but I'm too tired now. I'll look into it tomorrow.