RMC BFM is stepping up to the plate with Arcom. The group, led by Rodolphe Saadé, sent a letter to the regulator, this Tuesday, December 3, 2024, to protest against TF1 and France Télévisions, which deprived BFMTV of the broadcast of the interview with Prime Minister Michel Barnier. As a reminder, the head of government, targeted by two motions of censure which could bring him down as early as this Wednesday, granted “a joint interview“to Gilles Bouleau (TF1) and Anne-Sophie Lapix (France 2) from the Hôtel de Matignon this Tuesday,”constituting a historic first for a serving Prime Minister“, insists RMC BFM in this letter that Puremédias was able to read.
“An attack on information pluralism”
“Although this interview was also announced for live broadcast on LCI (channel 26 of TNT) and Franceinfo (channel 27), as well as on the digital platforms franceinfo.fr and france.tv, the TF1 and France Télévisions groups have denied RMC BFM authorization to resume the signal“, relates Nicolas de Tavernost, the president and CEO, who signs this letter.
“The RMC BFM group denounces this decision, which it considers to be an attack on information pluralism, attributable to two groups abusing their dominant position. This situation also constitutes a violation of the right to information.“, he is still indignant before asking the president of Arcom, Roch-Olivier Maistre, to “achieve a suitable solution on this historic occasion“.
Was Nicolas de Tavernost's letter acted upon? Announced “simultaneously on LCI and Franceinfo“, the interview was not broadcast live on channels 26 and 27. Darius Rochebin on LCI (special broadcast) and the tandem Agathe Lambret and Jean-Rémy Baudot on Franceinfo (“Les informed) simply commented and analyzed with their guests the extracts which reached them in dribs and drabs. Contacted by Puremédiasthe front page specified that this interview with Michel Barnier was given to TF1 and France 2. “BFMTV received the same treatment as all the news channels, including LCI and Franceinfo”. At the time of publishing these lines, France Télévisions had not responded to our requests.
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This Tuesday, the interview with the Prime Minister, broadcast on TF1 and France 2, brought together, between 8:20 p.m. and 8:46 p.m., 5.79 million viewers on TF1 (27.1% of 4+, 26.7% of 25-49 years and 25.5% of FRDA-50) and 4.52 million viewers on France 2 (21.2% of the public). 10.31 million viewers, or a little less than one in two viewers (48.3% of individuals aged four and over), followed this unique interview.
