Television: The Race to the Far Right

A far-right voice leaves, another returns. While after his catastrophic performance during the presidential campaign, the multi-card columnist (Le Figaro Magazine, CNews, Paris Première, etc.) Éric Zemmour is moving away from the sets, Robert Ménard is returning to the airwaves. The mayor of Béziers, re-elected in 2020 with the support of the National Rally, was recruited by LCI to host a weekly meeting at the start of the school year. He will present a ticket every Wednesday in “24h Pujadas”, announced Fabien Namias, the deputy general manager of the chain, at 20 Minutes.

From the outset, the head of LCI’s information anticipates the trial in uniformity, arguing that « the specificity of the program of David Pujadas, who has the expertise and the capacity to supervise and control the antenna is to give voice to all opinions”. No problem therefore: LCI, which was eyeing the peak audiences of CNews during the Zemmour period, has its own « polemicist », regardless of whether it anchors far-right ideas a little more in public opinion. “He was quite close to the extreme right. Today it is evolving. You have to hear different voices on LCI. As long as they are exercised within the republican framework (sic), they have a voice in the matter”, minimizes Namias, who recalls Ménard’s past as a journalist, then as president of Reporters Without Borders… but not his role as founder of the extreme right site Boulevard Voltaire.

LCI remains ambiguous: aware that Ménard has been touring TV and radio sets for ten years to promote Marine Le Pen, Fabien Namias promises that “his speaking time will be counted by the competent authorities. We watch over it.” This promises great flights. It seems that on CNews, Pascal Praud is jealous.