- France Ô bows out this Sunday evening after twenty-two years of existence.
- The public service channel is disappearing in favor of better visibility on the group's antennas, according to France Télévisions.
- An inadmissible speech from the viewers, who told 20 Minutes of their pain and their concern.
Last lap for France Ô. Unlike France 4, which has a one-year reprieve, the channel devoted to Overseas France has failed to ensure its survival. This Sunday, TNT channel 19 retraces its twenty-two years on the air in a major retrospective, before giving way to the test. To compensate for the lack of representation of the French overseas departments and territories on the small screen, France Télévisions signed a “pact for the visibility of overseas territories” in order to bring more visibility to overseas content on other antennas.
Julien, one of our readers, does not believe it. "All the specificities that make the Overseas Territories will be diluted on France 2 and France 3 by journalists who see in these territories only the volcanoes of Reunion Island and the palm trees of the Antilles", he writes, for fear that the The history, geopolitics and culture of these territories are neglected. On the other hand, the public group has launched “Outre-mer La 1ère”, a digital portal which aims to partially compensate for the closure of the channel. "The dilution in other chains or in the" digital portal "will correspond to homeopathic info and documentation", regrets Christian.
"We are not represented within the public audiovisual sector"
Among our readers, many are worried about the lack of visibility of overseas territories after the abolition of France Ô. "It was a beautiful window opened on these distant territories to help us live better together", comments Maryline, recently become addicted to the channel. A native of Guadeloupe, Christelle shares her sadness with us, for whom France Ô was a way of reconnecting with her island. “We are not represented in the public broadcasting sector,” she laments. Some natives of metropolitan France do not even know how to locate Guadeloupe, Martinique or Réunion on a map. "Jean-Claude, him, does not take off either:" This disappearance shows the disrespect towards the Ultramarins and their low consideration within the French media. "
“France Ô always went in a direction that others weren't going, and it was never a disappointment, according to Cyrielle. I will definitely regret France Ô, a bubble of escape and originality in such a dreary and conventional media landscape. »Created in 1998 under the name of RFO Sat, the TV channel took its final name in 2005. Five years later, it became the nineteenth national TNT channel. In 2018, the government announced 190 million euros in savings for public broadcasting and the oblivion of France Ô. "It's a shame, it's a channel that worked for open-mindedness and acceptance of the other," slips Lise.
Iconic programs
Over the years, France Ô has seen its audiences tested by the lack of clarity of its editorial line. In 2019, the channel reached an audience share of 0.3%, making it the least followed by the PAF. However, readers of 20 Minutes fondly recall the programs that made it famous, starting with reports, such as Les Témoins d'Outre-Mer . "The programs on old age in Martinique or the concept of beauty in women of color allow us to take a step back on our vision in metropolitan France", comments Lise. Beyond news broadcasts, France Ô allowed viewers to keep abreast of current events beyond the oceans thanks to its news newspapers, to "give a vision of daily life and allow us, if we had to go there, to be informed of the news of the day, ”says Jean-Pierre.
The channel also broadcast “original detective series”, “culturally enriching programs” and “exotic shows”. Among them, Internet users cite Daniel Picouly's Passion Outre-Mer , Ô rendez-vous , and the extreme sports show Riding Zone .
The channel also gave pride of place to culture and especially music, with the retransmission of concerts by artists from the French overseas departments and territories. Moreover, it is on a show that the channel will bow out this Sunday, with the broadcast of the 2019 edition of L'Outre-mer fait son Olympia . Goodbye which will therefore be applauded.
Web
Outre-mer La 1ère: France Télévisions' overseas digital portal is launched
Television
Disappearance of France 4 and France Ô: What will public broadcasting look like?
- Television
- Overseas
- Closing
- Culture
- France Televisions