France - July 2023

Geoffroy Lejeune, the far-right former editor of the Valeurs Actuelles magazine, has been appointed editor-in-chief at Journal du Dimanche (JDD), against the will of more than 95 per cent of its journalists. JDD is France’s biggest Sunday newspaper, known for its centrist position. Under Lejeune’s leadership, Valeurs Actuelles was found guilty of racist hate speech by a Parisian court. This decision comes with the takeover of Lagardère Media Group, owner of JDD, by billionaire Vincent Bolloré, who is known for purchasing French media outlets and imposing a right-wing editorial line on them. Fearing for their editorial independence and worried about media concentration, JDD journalists have gone on the longest strike in French media since 1975. They have received widespread support. Academics and civil society members signed open letters, Reporters Sans Frontières organized a rally for strikers, and lawmakers submitted bills to safeguard editorial independence in the French media. 

Sources: RSF (1), RSF (2), RSF (3), France24, Le Monde (1), Le Monde (2), The Guardian, Financial Times