France 24
On the 6th of December 2006, a new television signal began broadcasting from the Paris suburb of Issy-les-Moulineaux. This moment marked the culmination of two decades of political debate and legislative maneuvering within France. The project originated in 1986 when Prime Minister Jacques Chirac expressed a desire for an international news channel in French. He noted that existing offerings like Radio France Internationale and TV5 were fragmented and ineffective. The First Gulf War of 1990 further highlighted the power of channels like CNN International to shape global opinion. A parliamentary minister named Philippe Séguin wished to create a French-language equivalent to counter this dominance. By 1996, nineteen governmental reports had been produced over ten years without a final decision. Prime Minister Alain Juppé asked Jean-Paul Cluzel to create a new channel. Cluzel proposed grouping TV5, RFI, and CFI into a corporation called Téléfi. The UMP-led government followed that recommendation until the Socialist Party returned to power. Hubert Védrine, the new Minister of Foreign Affairs, favored augmenting existing outlets instead. EuroNews launched in 1993, making the media presence overseas more complex and costly. President Jacques Chirac relaunched the project on the 7th of March 2002 during his presidential campaign. He spoke before foreign delegates in the French Senate about the need for a big round-the-clock news channel. After his reelection, various technical options were examined at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Dominique de Villepin headed that ministry when the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq reassured authorities about the project. On the 19th of March 2003, Matignon opened offers to develop an international news channel. Three candidates replied by the deadline on the 22nd of April 2003. France Télévisions and RFI offered to operate a public service sector channel. Groupe TF1 proposed an international version of its LCI channel. Groupe Canal+ suggested a news factory to reinforce its i>Télé channel. A parliamentary commission voted unanimously to form a public-owned corporation. Ignoring this work, the government asked Bernard Brochand to form a partnership between applying candidates. Brochand unsuccessfully attempted to group both Groupe TF1 and Groupe Canal+. He then proposed a 50/50 partnership between France Télévisions and Groupe TF1. Defying parliament, President Chirac wished for a launch towards the end of 2004. Unionized journalists denounced the potential alliance with the private sector as the marriage of the snake and the rabbit. Radio France International was angry it would not be associated with the project. Le Monde described the partnership as having a public channel with a private owner. The press criticized its modest budget of 80 million euro compared to 600 million euro for BBC World. Foreign Minister Michel Barnier announced on the 21st of July that the channel would not be funded before 2007. Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin acceded to pressure from the Élysée. On the 9th of December 2005, he confirmed the launch in 2005. The amendment was carried the same day in the National Assembly.
The ownership structure of France 24 shifted dramatically over its first decade of operation. From its creation in 2006 until 2008, the channel was managed by a management board and a supervisory board. In 2008, the French State bought the shares of the two shareholders for an amount of 2 million euros each. Groupe TF1 ceded its share in the channel to a government-owned holding company called Société de l'audiovisuel extérieur de la France. This entity is now known as France Médias Monde. The state became the sole shareholder through the Agence des participations de l'État. A decree published in the Journal Officiel de la République Française on the 23rd of January 2009 authorized France Télévisions to cede its share. That same decree transferred its share to the Société de l'audiovisuel extérieur de la France for the sum of 4 million euro. President Nicolas Sarkozy announced on the 8th of January 2008 that he favored reducing France 24's programming to French only. In January 2012, AEF announced a merger between France 24 and Radio France International. This procedure was finalized on the 13th of February 2012. Alain de Pouzilhac stated that they had just created a French audiovisual group of international dimensions. One hundred two posts were cut preceding the official merger, with 85 coming from RFI. Editorial teams, technical departments, financial resources, and human resources departments of both organizations were involved. The total budget for external broadcasting from France totaled 300 million euro each year. Since 2022, France's audiovisual license fee was abolished. Revenue from France's Value-added tax replaced the funding source for France 24. The current director of France 24 is Vanessa Burggraf. Previous directors include Marc Saikali. Patrick de Carolis assumed his position as president of the public corporation in the summer of 2005. He expressed doubts about an alliance with TF1, stating that you need a single driver in a car to be effective.
France 24 broadcasts on four distinct channels covering different linguistic markets around the world. These channels operate in French, English, Arabic, and Spanish. Their playout is outsourced to Red Bee Media. The programming divides more or less equally between news coverage and news magazines or special reports. Alongside its own 260 journalists, the network can call on resources from Groupe TF1 and France Télévisions. Partners such as AFP and RFI also support their operations. In April 2007, the channel increased its reach by airing programs in Arabic for viewers in the Maghreb, North Africa, and the Middle East. A new Spanish-language channel launched in September 2017 from Bogotá, Colombia. This channel competes with CNN en Español, DW Español, NTN24, TeleSUR, RT en español, and CGTN Spanish. As of May 2020, it broadcasts 18 hours of programming daily. It simulcasts the English-language channel during the remaining time. From the 2nd of September 2016, the French news channel France Info started simulcasting France 24's French channel from midnight to 6am daily. Laurent Bignolas anchored the early newscast on France 2 Le 6h Info starting the 20th of March 2017. Specific presenters anchor different time slots across the schedule. Haxie Meyers-Belkin anchors Day Break from 06:00 to 09:00 on weekdays. Stuart Norval hosts The World Today from 09:00 to 12:00. Genie Godula presents Paris Direct between 12:00 and 15:00. Nadia Massih covers Around the World from 15:00 to 18:00. Francois Picard leads World View from 18:00 to 20:00. Tom Burges-Watson anchors Prime News Paris between 20:00 and 22:00. Mark Owen presents Night Watch from 01:00 to 06:00. Special programs include Across Africa hosted by Georja Calvin-Smith. This weekly review covers political and social developments in Africa. The Business Interview is hosted by Raphael Kahane. Culture Critique features Augustin Trapenard on literature and Stephen Clarke on cinema. Environment programming is hosted by Eve Irvine. Middle East Matters focuses on regional conflicts and politics.
The network adapted quickly to new technologies following its initial launch. France 24 launched on the 6th of December 2006 at 20:30 CET, initially available online as a web stream. Satellite distribution followed a day later covering France and Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the United States. In 2010, France 24 began broadcasting online through its own iPhone and Android apps. An official App for the iPhone was released that year. On the 1st of April 2007, the Irish terrestrial channel TG4 began carrying retransmissions of France 24 overnight. France 24 started a VOD service on Virgin Media in 2007. Customers could access weekly news updates and programs to watch when they chose. On the 1st of October 2009, France24 relaunched its website with a complete video archive. Viewers could replay the past 24 hours of programming anytime. On the 1st of March 2010, France 24 released live streaming with experimental automatic transcription. This effort involved Yacast Media, Exalead, Vocapia Research, and Microsoft. On the 3rd of October 2014, France 24 began live streaming the channel on YouTube. As of November 2022, the network became available for streaming on Roku devices. The French, English, Arabic, and Spanish channels are all available live on the France 24 website. In New Zealand, the channels are available via Sky Network Television on channel 100 for English and 101 for French. It is available via Now TV in certain regions. In Hong Kong and Sri Lanka, this channel is available via Sri Lanka Telecom Peo TV on channel 27. In Pakistan, the channel appears on most cable systems, PTCL Smart TV, and NayaTel. On the 8th of August 2020, France 24 launched on OpenView in South Africa as a replacement for BBC World News. In August 2021, the streaming service France Channel launched in the United States with a partnership with France Médias Monde. Subscribers could watch livestreams of both the English and French versions. On the 9th of January 2011, the English and French channels officially switched to 16:9 widescreen at 02:00 CET. The Arabic channel switched to widescreen later that day at 06:00 CET. Graphics were modified to fit the new format. The studio design remained unchanged.
Foreign governments have restricted access to France 24 due to sensitive political reporting. On the 3rd of March 2010, Iran blocked the news website of this French broadcaster. On the 27th of March 2023, Burkina Faso ordered the cessation of France 24's broadcasting on its territory. This decision followed an interview with the leader of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. Burkinabé authorities accused France 24 of providing a platform for legitimizing terrorist actions. Government spokesperson Jean-Emmanuel Ouedraogo made the announcement. The French authorities contested the decision citing their commitment to press freedom. A European Union spokesperson considered this commitment compatible with the fight against terrorism. The government of Niger also suspended France 24 following the 2023 Nigerien coup d'état. On the 27th of July 2023, the state-owned Algeria Press Service openly criticized the channel. They labeled it a trash channel and stated it is controlled by the Élysée. This criticism came in response to reporting on the 2023 North Africa wildfires. The agency accused France 24 of slanted coverage regarding aid provided. They claimed the network focused solely on the Kabylia region and singled out Algeria. Fires affected the wider Mediterranean basin according to independent reports. In the United States, France 24 was pulled from Spectrum cable TV on the 9th of January 2018. An hour of France 24 news in English is shown in the US on Free Speech TV at 6pm Eastern and 2am Eastern. It appears on Link TV as well. As of August 2010, the network became available to subscribers to Dish Network. Trade union members working for France Télévisions circulated a petition in March 2005 opposing the project.
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Common questions
When did France 24 officially begin broadcasting?
France 24 began broadcasting on the 6th of December 2006 from Issy-les-Moulineaux. The signal launched at 20:30 CET and was initially available as a web stream before satellite distribution followed.
Who founded France 24 and when was the project initiated?
Prime Minister Jacques Chirac expressed the desire for an international news channel in French in 1986. The project culminated after decades of debate, with President Chirac relaunching it during his presidential campaign on the 7th of March 2002.
What languages does France 24 broadcast in today?
France 24 broadcasts four distinct channels covering French, English, Arabic, and Spanish markets. A new Spanish-language channel launched in September 2017 from Bogotá to compete with other global networks.
Which countries have restricted access to France 24 due to political reporting?
Iran blocked the website of France 24 on the 3rd of March 2010 while Burkina Faso ordered the cessation of its broadcasting on the 27th of March 2023. Algeria also criticized the channel in July 2023 following reports on North Africa wildfires.
How is France 24 funded and who owns the network now?
The French State became the sole shareholder through the Agence des participations de l'État after buying shares in 2008 and 2009. Since 2022, revenue from France's Value-added tax replaced the audiovisual license fee as the primary funding source.