While France 4 was to be arrested this summer, the President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron, announced that he wanted the channel to continue broadcasting on channel 14. For him, the animation and education channel "took a a separate place in homes, especially since the pandemic ".
Emmanuel Macron wished on Tuesday that the public television channel France 4, which was to close in August, "continues its mission" around youth and education, in a message posted on Twitter.
"Animation and education channel, France 4 has taken a special place in homes, especially since the pandemic. I hope that it will continue its mission around two axes: youth during the day, culture in the evening, to extend the success of the Culturebox experience ", argued the Head of State.
https://twitter.com/EmmanuelMacron/status/1394681959180296197?s=20
A public channel defended by senators
According to the Elysee, it is a question of maintaining the broadcasting of the channel on the hertzian network, which currently occupies the channel 14. The government initially planned to stop France 4 in the summer of 2020 in favor of 100% digital programs and for the sake of savings for France Télévisions.
But he had granted a one-year reprieve to the chain, acclaimed for its educational programs during the closure of schools during the first confinement of spring 2020. In early May, forty senators from all sides had called on deputies to "confirm" an amendment voted by the upper house to perpetuate the youth channel, in a column published in the Journal du dimanche.