The public broadcasting merger project driven by Rachida Dati is falling behind schedule: its examination in the National Assembly was postponed on Thursday, while the entire sector is on strike to oppose it.
MEPs were due to debate this lightning reform at first reading on Thursday and Friday. But, faced with the congestion of the agenda, the government took the decision to postpone it. The text may not be examined until June.
And this while the timetable desired by the Minister of Culture was already very constrained, with a merger of public broadcasting scheduled from January 1, 2026.
From the regional networks of France 3 or France Bleu to the Parisian headquarters, the entire sector went on strike on Thursday and must do the same on Friday.
The Radio France antennas were very disrupted and the usual broadcasts replaced by music. According to management, the rate of strikers stood at 33% for all employees, compared to 55% among journalists.
On the France Télévisions side, there were 12% of strikers, all professions combined, management indicated. As a result, the - channel rebroadcast programs. The 8 p.m. news on France 2 was produced “under special conditions”, indicated its presenter Anne-Sophie Lapix.
To ensure the retransmission of the debate in the evening on France 2 between Prime Minister Gabriel Attal and the president of the RN Jordan Bardella, management planned to use external service providers, according to the unions.
Several general staff meetings are to be held on Friday, including a joint one at the Labor Exchange at 10:00 a.m.
– “Political agenda” –
In addition to the strike, several rallies took place in France on Thursday, including the main one in Paris, near the Ministry of Culture. Under the slogan “No to the destruction of public broadcasting”, it brought together several hundred employees and a delegation was received at the ministry.
“Your very strong strike today is already moving the lines, since the parliamentary agenda has miraculously been postponed by a month,” launched the general secretary of the CGT, Sophie Binet, who came to “provide support” for her union .
Concerns are particularly strong at Radio France, where there are fears that radio will be swallowed up by TV.
“We are not against an evolution of our media but we do not want it to be done in a rushed manner to satisfy the political agenda of our minister,” Mathilde Goupil, SNJ union representative, told AFP. (National Union of Journalists) at France Télévisions.
According to her, the lower mobilization at France Télévisions can be explained by a “form of fatigue” after several reorganization projects in recent years.
– “Very bad start” –
To “gather the strengths” of public broadcasting, Ms. Dati plans a transitional phase with a common holding company on January 1, 2025, then the merger a year later. Some 16,000 employees are affected.
In addition to France Télévisions and Radio France, the juggernaut would also include Ina (National Audiovisual Institute) and France Médias Monde (RFI, France 24). The integration of this last group, however, is debated even in the presidential camp.
Within these four public companies, fears are acute for resources and jobs.
To staff, Rachida Dati assured Sunday: “I want to guarantee you not only sustainability but (also) your strength” in a world of “exacerbated competition”, between platforms and social networks.
“Obviously, we are not going to standardize either professions or activities,” she insisted on Wednesday before the Senate.
The giant company, called “France Médias”, would have a budget of four billion euros.
To accelerate this project, the minister from LR relied on a bill from Senator Laurent Lafon (Centrist Union) programming a holding company, already adopted in June 2023 by the upper house.
“We are not opposed to the merger” but “we can wonder about the timetable”, underlined Mr. Lafon before the announcement of the postponement.
“It’s a very bad start to pass this reform,” even predicts a majority member. “Social mobilization will be very strong. It’s difficult, even if that doesn’t take away from the need for reform.”
The fate of France Médias Monde does not appear to be decided. Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné affirmed that the government was ultimately in favor of its exclusion from the single company. But discussions could be tight with the right, which is conversely attached to its inclusion.
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