France Télévisions

France Télévisions unites state-owned channels, each having its own quite precise editorial purpose. France 2 is a flagship, France 3 is a regional channel, France 4 is young public-oriented, France 5 deals with culture and France O concerns the French overseas departments. The organization has always been pointed at for its supposed links with the politicians in power, whether they were from the right or from the left wing. The most recent example is the appointment of Delphine Ernotte, the new head of the organization.

France Télévisions channels have been involved in several controversies during recent years. Among them were a series promoting the euro and a fake report about Vladimir Putin (see ‘Controversies’).

An outsider, who did not seem to be the one to bet on, Delphine Ernotte succeeded in taking the leadership of France Télévisions. The promotion provoked a lot of chatter. Ernotte, a former Orange manager with no real experience in media, took the leadership of the state-owned broadcasting group (with channels Réseau Outre-Mer première, France 2, France 3, France 4, France 5, France O). The outsider overtook her competitors by a hair’s breadth. A cause for suspicion.

A lot of observers accuse her of having utilized her influential network in order to achieve the goals. This network includes some individuals from the left-wing camp. The name Olivier Schrameck, a former cabinet director for Lionel Jospin in Matignon and promoted to the CSA leadership by François Hollande, is often mentioned. Christian Jacob, Les Républicains group president at the National Assembly, even called for a commission of inquiry.

A committed feminist, she created Innov’Elles during her Orange era. This internal network was intended to record every sexist expression. Even a €10 penalty system for offenders was set up. The new France Télévisions president is also member of Le Siècle. This is an elite club which boasts a number of influential individuals from political, media, business and cultural spheres as members.

A jolly fellow of the French media world, the presenter is a key figure at the "great mass" of the public broadcasting. His flagship program at France 2, On n’est pas couché, is a real hit. Every Saturday evening, politicians, writers, artists and personalities of all kinds follow each other in taking a seat on the program’s sofa and facing its chroniclers (currently Léa Salamé and Yann Moix).

Openly homosexual, Ruquier also doesn’t hide his left-wing point of view. And sometimes it is troublesome in terms of objectivity. "I want to take pleasure of receiving them, and I do not wish to expose my public to the ideas of le Front National, whoever shall represent it — Marine [Le Pen], Jean-Marie [Le Pen] or Bruno Gollnisch (...) That is my perception of the public service", he stated in 2010. Concerning the homosexual topic, the presenter confessed not to be perfectly objective: "Of course, while on stage and speaking about homosexuality, I am not completely objective, but I am trying to remain so."

Moreover, Ruquier is the subject of a controversy. He would have granted some financial help to Patrick Font during his imprisonment, according to what the latter said.

The ex-associate of Philippe Val (a former Charlie Hebdo chairman) spent four years in jail for pedophile acts.

In October 2014, France 4 announced that it would broadcast the series Anarchy. Designed as a participatory program, insofar as web users were supposed to create the story, it triggered a wave of criticism. Indeed, its starting point deals with a France on the verge of an economic disaster following its withdrawal from eurozone. "France 4 and France TV new scripts invite you to discover Anarchy, the story of a French State forced to withdraw from the eurozone. From now on every citizen has to live on €40 per week.

"The economy is staggering, society is faltering, and the threat of chaos is here." A large number of observers, such as François Asselineau, Olivier Berruyer or Jacque Sapir denounced the initiative as vulgar Europeanist propaganda. The project failed comprehensively while broadcast on France 4.

In 2013 France 2, the group’s flagship, was brought under the spotlight for a phony story. In order to damage Russian President Vladimir Putin’s image, the state-run channel undertook a less-than-ethical endeavor. The story in question dealt with an alleged relationship between the national icon Brigitte Bardot and Putin. France 2 tried to show that passionate animal activist Bardot turned a blind eye to the president’s "passion" for hunting.

The photo is intended to support the theory that the Kremlin chief is dressed in military attire, holding a gun and finding himself close to an animal which seems to be dead. In fact, the report shows Putin next to a tiger he had just sedated with a tranquilizer gun. He was taking part in a Siberian tiger protection program, which required the animals to be tagged. The end of the initial video showed the tiger heading peacefully into the taiga.