France votes: Oligarchs, demagogues and the media
A special edition of the show looks at the French election: the billionaire media mogul boosting the far right, and the reporters exposing the movement’s violent underbelly.
Over the course of the French presidential election campaign, roughly one-third of voters have said they will back a candidate from the far right – either Marine Le Pen, who President Emmanuel Macron defeated in 2017, or Eric Zemmour, a former journalist with multiple convictions for hate speech.
Zemmour owes much of his prominence to a news channel owned by media tycoon Vincent Bollore, whose influence increases with each news outlet he takes over.
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As France goes to the polls, we examine the structural flaws and societal dangers of a media sector dominated by billionaires.
Contributors:
Jean-Baptiste Rivoire – Author of ‘The Elysée and the Oligarchs vs the News’, former investigative journalist at Canal+ and founder of Off Investigation
Pascale Clark – Former presenter at Europe 1 and journalist at France 5
Alain Duhamel – Political commentator at BFMTV
Nadiya Lazzouni – Presenter at Le Média
Daniel Schneidermann – Founder of Arrêt sur Images and columnist at Libération
Hate unmasked: The reporters tracking France’s far right
Journalists at independent and local media outlets have been behind some of the biggest exposés of France’s growing far-right networks. The editor of an investigative website and a reporter for a regional daily relate their experiences of exposing violent right-wing groups – and the dangers that come with the territory.
Contributors:
Mathieu Molard – Editor-in-Chief of StreetPress
Josué Jean-Bart – Reporter at Ouest-France
Published On 9 Apr 2022