Thursday and Friday, the entire public broadcasting sector is called to strike. Objective: to fight the reform of public broadcasting, which must be examined at first reading on Thursday and Friday in the Assembly. Disruptions are expected on the various antennas, from France Télévision to Radio France via France Médias Monde, and therefore RFI. This Wednesday, more than 1,100 Radio France employees, including company figures, signed a statement rejecting the merger.
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“ Demagogic, ineffective and dangerous »: this is how the signatories of the column published in The world, including figures from Radio France, qualify the project as a reform. It plans to create a holding company in 2025, before a merger the following year of public broadcasting companies: France Télévisions, Radio France, the National Audiovisual Institute (INA), and finally France Médias Monde, i.e. RFI, France 24 and Monte Carlo Doualiya.
The integration of FMM into the project is debated even in the presidential camp. According to the Minister of Culture Rachida Dati, who is leading the reform, the strengths of public broadcasting are “ scattered ”, hence a “ risk of weakening » compared to international platforms like Netflix and private channels. But “ it is not the return of ORTF that will allow us to compete with Netflix », retort the environmentalists (the entire left rejects the reform). The ORTF is the structure which brought together French public broadcasting until the 1970s, and whose lack of independence was criticized.
Some unions also fear that television will swallow up radio. An analysis shared by the Societies of Journalists of the media concerned, who deplore a reform carried out in haste and without any consultation. Strike notices have been filed in the four public companies, and rallies are planned for Thursday near the National Assembly and the Ministry of Culture.
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