The motto for France 24, President Chirac’s riposte to the American-British domination of world television news, was to be: “Everything you are not supposed to know.” It now has been replaced with “Beyond the News”, but the message remains the same.France’s 24-hour service, which starts broadcasting on December 6, will offer an alternative to a global news narrative that, in French eyes, is largely shaped by America’s CNN and BBC World.
To reach the maximum audience in a field that was joined last week by al-Jazeera English, France has put aside its linguistic qualms. The “French Eye on World News”, as it calls itself, will broadcast via satellite and the internet in English as well as French and, soon, Arabic.