Staff at France鈥檚 major public broadcasting groups are on strike over government plans to merge their services into a media giant.
The France T茅l茅visions and Radio France groups are striking on May 24 (and also held strike action on May 23) alongside staff from the Ina (Institut national de l'audiovisuel) and France M茅dias Monde (which includes RFI and France24).
The strike affects major national and regional broadcasters including France 3 and FranceBleu, with both providing local and regional news that is otherwise often overlooked by private broadcasters.
The strike is expected to continue into next week if the merger talks go ahead, say union bosses.
The prospective merger was set to be debated in parliament on May 28, but this has been postponed due other bills, including the agricultural bill, taking precedence.
鈥淲hy commit to a merger that promises to be long, complex, anxiety-provoking for employees, and with no real editorial objective?鈥� said one union group representing France T茅l茅visions staff members.
En raison d'un mouvement de gr猫ve 脿 l'appel des intersyndicales de France T茅l茅visions et Radio France contre la r茅forme de l'audiovisuel public, le fonctionnement du site est perturb茅 ce jeudi. Nous vous prions de nous en excuser
— franceinfo (@franceinfo)
16,000 employees affected
The merger would see the groups combined into one major public broadcasting service along with certain other media that fall under the same category,
It would allow the various groups to 鈥渟hare their strengths鈥�, said Culture Minister Rachida Dati, who is spearheading the change.
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If her plans go ahead, a joint holding company would be used for all of the services from January 2025, with them merging in 2026.
Indeed, the joint company already exists, having been created when similar schemes were planned in the past, but ultimately fell through.
"It鈥檚 ten years now that parliament and the senate have been calling in unison for this reform,鈥� said Renaissance MP Quentin Bataillon on on May 22. 鈥淲e know that the status quo is untenable.鈥�
The influence of the internet - and social media in particular - are threats to the current model, said Mr Bataillon.
鈥淲e have to reform public broadcasters quickly to make them stronger and not take anything away from them鈥�
The prospective group created by the merger would be called 鈥楩rance M茅dias鈥� and have an annual budget of around 鈧�4billion, according to Ms Dati.
Up to 16,000 employees in the sector may see their jobs affected by the changes, with those working in radio particularly concerned about being engulfed by the more prominent TV infrastructure.
Presenters from Radio France including presenters L茅a Salam茅, Nicolas Demorand, and Guillaume Erner expressed the changes, calling them 鈥榙emagogic, ineffective and dangerous鈥� in Le Monde.
However, the government has reassured staff members that the merger would not threaten the work they do.
鈥淚 want to guarantee not only your continuity but also your strength鈥� in a world of exacerbated competition between platforms and social networks,鈥� Ms Dati recently said.
鈥淥bviously, we are not going to standardise either professions or activities,鈥� she added in a Senate hearing on the matter earlier this week.
