I’ve posted before that French approval of the European Union’s constitution is in jeopardy, though even a non vote will probably not stop the EU. The issue has spawned a controversy among the French about representation of the pending vote among its public media.
The debate over the benefits and the drawbacks of the treaty has not only divided France, it has also bitterly split France’s journalists over the nature of their coverage.
A group of journalists from French state TV and radio are so angered by what they see as one-sided propaganda campaign being broadcast on the airwaves on behalf of the government and the Yes campaign that they have set up an online petition, signed by more than 15,000 people since 1 May.
They presented it to President Jacques Chirac, the heads of French TV and radio and to the director of the CSA French broadcasting standards authority, Dominique Baudis.
“This is a grotesque situation,” says Jacques Cotta, a well-known TV correspondent for France 2 who is one of the leaders of the campaign for fair coverage in the lead-up to the referendum.
“Publicly-owned media in France are broadcasting sheer propaganda to the public, and this absence of any pluralism or any attempt to represent and discuss the point of view of those who want to vote No to the Treaty is profoundly undemocratic”
He and his colleague Jean-Marc Surcin, a documentary-maker for France 2, agree that French newspapers have been no different, with most overtly supporting the Yes campaign.
However, it is the role of publicly-funded and publicly-accountable state broadcasters which angers them most.
“These are broadcasters paid for by the public, and they should be reflecting both sides of the debate fairly,” Jean-Marc Surcin tells me.
They were granted a lengthy meeting with Mr Baudis, in which the journalists pointed out that according to their figures, French TV and radio had given 71% of its time to the Yes campaigners, and devoted a mere 29% to the No campaign between 1 January and 31 March.
Opponents have become embittered by the one-sided treatment of the debate by the government and the publicly-owned media.
France’s best-known Eurosceptic MP, Philippe de Villiers, has warned his supporters that they face what he called an “incredible bludgeoning” by the political and media elite.
“On the radio, in the newspapers, on the television channels, there is just one single editorial voice: in favour of the Yes,” Mr de Villiers told one rally.
He brandished a copy of the draft constitution which has been posted to every single household in France, along with an explanatory leaflet. That leaflet, say No campaigners, is deeply biased in favour of the treaty.
Mr de Villiers suspects a plot. “It’s unreadable, in tiny print, and that’s not an accident. People are going to say, ‘I can’t read this, I’ll just read the helpful synopsis’. It’s a trick worthy of Fidel Castro,” he claims.
Interestingly, the story turns to how constitution opponents are succeeding to get their message out to some — blogs.
So instead – with accusations of media bias springing up daily on all sides – the No campaigners are using the web as never before.
This is the first major campaign in France in which the internet has become a key weapon, with bloggers and internet-users becoming the No campaign’s front-line troops – not just in terms of influencing public opinion but also in rallying the French public to attend its campaign events.
The Socialist MP Jack Lang – spokesman for the left’s official Yes campaign – has already warned that his side is in danger of losing the “cyber-debate” because of the strength of the No campaign on the web.
As I’ve pointed out before, a French “no” may mean little eventually to the EU, but all of the intrigue has made for interesting theater. Besides, any setback for Chirac that doesn’t harm us is a good thing.