When it comes to political row as report calls for sweeping cuts to french public broadcasting, french politicians on the left and centre have condemned a parliamentary report published Tuesday recommending a 25% cut to public broadcasting, intensifying a dispute over media independence in France before next April's presidential election. The far right, leading in polls, wants state television and radio privatised.
Understanding Political Row As Report Calls For Sweeping Cuts To French Public Broadcasting
Charles Alloncle of the Union of the Right for the Republic (UDR) published the report after a five-month inquiry into the "neutrality, workings and financing" of public broadcasting. His party is allied to Marine Le Pen's far-right, anti-immigration National Rally (RN). Originally reported by The Guardian.
He recommended that the French president directly nominate broadcasting chiefs, backed by votes in parliament and the senate. Other proposals include merging several major channels, reducing youth broadcasting, cutting gameshow and entertainment spending by 75% and reducing the sport budget by 33%.
Charles Alloncle said state TV and radio were "ill-adapted to our era", faced a financial crisis and had "lost touch with what French people want". He called for complete reform.
But the government isn't obliged to adopt his recommendations. Prime minister Sébastien Lecornu said reform was necessary while dismissing the report as a "missed opportunity". His response underscored resistance beyond the opposition left and within France's governing centre.
Hearings descend into accusations of bias
Far-right politicians' allegations of bias against them prompted the inquiry. Its hearings featured heated rows and suspensions; critics accused Charles Alloncle of factually incorrect questioning tilted towards the far right. He denied those accusations.
Socialist MP Ayda Hadizadeh, an inquiry panel member, said proceedings became a "tribunal" for politicians seeking "to kill public broadcasting". RN MP Anne Sicard said her party was "treated like the enemy" by the state broadcaster.
Marine Le Pen praised the inquiry, saying it had "shone a light" on broadcasting's "downward spiral, misguided financial management and multiple attacks on political neutrality".
Centre-right MP Jérémie Patrier-Leitus, who presided over the hearings, called Charles Alloncle "dishonest" and said his report would "prepare the mood" for privatisation. Charles Alloncle denied that, saying his recommendations stopped short of privatisation.
The dispute has put broadcasting at the centre of France's pre-election culture wars, with politicians divided over its future ownership and independence.
Funding uncertainty shadows France Télévisions
France Télévisions, the country's top media outlet, operates four national TV channels and 24 regional channels. It's a key financier of films, drama and documentaries. Radio France runs several national and local stations and dominates podcasting.
President Emmanuel Macron, who has criticised public broadcasting, scrapped the TV licence fee in 2022. A long-term funding model remains undefined.
France Télévisions head Delphine Ernotte, who testified during the hearings, called the report an "ideological reading of the public service" and warned its proposals would cause a historic weakening of public broadcasting.
Agnès Pannier-Runacher, an MP in Macron's centrist party and former minister, called the inquiry "shameful". Agnès Pannier-Runacher said his main problem with state TV and radio "was that it was not sufficiently promoting the ideas of the far right". She directly compared the attack on media independence to Hungary under former prime minister Viktor Orbán and the US under Donald Trump.
Bolloré empire faces inquiry influence allegation
The confrontation comes amid the growing dominance of Catholic conservative industrialist Vincent Bolloré's private media empire. Critics say it platforms reactionary voices and boosts the far right.
Bolloré's CNews was the most-watched TV news channel last year and is highly critical of the state broadcaster. This week, NGO AC! Anti-Corruption filed a legal complaint in Paris alleging Lagardère News, part of Bolloré's empire, tried to influence the inquiry by sending several MPs lists of questions hostile to public broadcasting.
Charles Alloncle denied receiving questions or being influenced by external parties. Lagardère News hasn't commented publicly on the allegations.
Jordan Bardella, RN's party president and a potential presidential candidate, has reiterated that his party "would begin a process of privatisation" if it wins the next election. That promise goes beyond Charles Alloncle's stated recommendations, keeping ownership of state media firmly within the presidential contest alongside questions of funding and independence.
With ministers free to reject the report, attention now turns to whether reform proposals advance before April's vote and which broadcasting commitments presidential candidates ultimately make to French voters.
Originally reported by The Guardian. View original.