France: public broadcasting under pressure
In France, a parliament inquiry report calling for sweeping cuts to the funding and number of public broadcasters has caused a furore. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has rejected the demands and findings put forward by the committee's rapporteur, far-right MP Charles Alloncle. France's press is also divided on the topic.
Is ideological alignment the goal?
This is a perilous step, L’Humanité warns:
“Alloncle and his allies dream of privatising this public service. ... These lackeys in suits and ties intend to dismantle the cornerstones [of public service broadcasting]: information, education and entertainment. The ideological alignment here is unmistakable. ... If the far right wins the 2027 presidential election, political control will become total.”
Report raises valid questions
L'Opinion editor-in-chief Nicolas Beytout also sees positive aspects to the report:
“In the heat of the moment it's impossible to take a measured view of the 70 suggestions listed in the report: approving them means being branded as the gravedigger of public broadcasting; rejecting them means being complicit in the broadcaster's partisan tactics. Even if some of the solutions it offers are poor, it often asks the right questions. ... Is the remit of these broadcasters not sometimes misused? And what really distinguishes a public from a private broadcaster?”