"There is an obvious fear that in the long term, we will disappear," said a protester.
The employees of the public audiovisual sector were on strike, Tuesday, June 28, to protest against the plan to abolish the audiovisual license fee wanted by Emmanuel Macron.
Around 1,000 demonstrators, according to the organizers, marched in Paris in the early afternoon from Montparnasse station to the area around the National Assembly, where the newly elected deputies were returning.
The abolition of the royalty was proposed by Emmanuel Macron during the presidential campaign, in response to the problem of the purchasing power of the French.
But for the unions and the strikers, it threatens the financing and independence of public broadcasting.
"Under the pretext of restoring purchasing power to the French, we are undermining the existence of public broadcasting while the license fee represents only 38 cents a day for those who pay it", underlines Serge Cimino, journalist at France 3 and union representative of SNJ France Télévisions.
"We are fully aware of the difficulties encountered by the French, but it must be understood that the royalty is not a tax, it is a contribution which makes it possible to finance live shows, cinematographic creation and programs of quality on television or radio," he continues.
Leaving from Montparnasse, the demonstration is heading in a good-natured atmosphere towards the National Assembly, where the deputies are back in service today pic.twitter.com/tZE7cZOTcw
— Romain Brunet (@romain2dc) June 28, 2022
Amounting to 138 euros in mainland France and 88 euros overseas, the fee only concerns households that have a television: the others do not pay it, even if they watch programs on a computer, tablet or smartphone.
Its removal will result in a shortfall of more than 3 billion euros, which the State promises to compensate with public broadcasters.
The inter-union at the origin of the strike call proposes to take inspiration from the Nordic countries, which have increased the number of people who have to pay the fee.
"Making all taxpayers pay, whether they have a television set or not, since everyone watches or listens to our programs in one way or another anyway, would even make it possible to lower the amount of the contribution" , says Serge Cimino.
The threat of the policy of empty coffers
Present from the start of the demonstration to support the strike movement, the socialist senator from Paris David Assouline, a recognized media specialist, denounced the policy of empty coffers that, according to him, the government would like to put in place.
"Ultimately, we know very well how it will end if we break this levy dam: from the moment there is no more dedicated funding for public broadcasting and we have to dip into the budget General of the State, we will end up being told that all this is too expensive and that we have to cut expenses or close a chain, or even, as we already hear sometimes, privatize", he explains after defending public service at the microphone.
>> To read: How is public broadcasting financed in other European countries?
Along the route, passers-by look at the demonstrators with a curious air, trying to understand their motivations by reading the signs, on which one could read: "Save public broadcasting!", "Macron return the fee", "No to the breakage of public broadcasting".
Demonstration against the abolition of the audiovisual license fee, June 28, 2022, in Paris.
© Romain Brunet, France 24
Rue de Rennes, Yasmine and Mehdi, sellers of a telephone shop, watch the scene and support the demonstrators.
“It is good to want to restore purchasing power to the French, but frankly, there is more urgent than the royalty, judges Yasmine. Have you seen the price of gasoline and food? above that we have to lower the prices to really help us."
A little further, in the very chic 7th arrondissement, it is with a look that mixes amusement and astonishment that onlookers on the terrace or in the middle of shopping discover that a social struggle has chosen to cross their neighborhood.
The France Media World specificity
Beyond the sole question of the license fee, the strikers have been worried about the future of public broadcasting since a Senate report by the Republicans, published on June 8, revived the idea of a major merger between France Télévisions, Radio France, France Médias Monde (France 24, RFI, MCD) and INA.
"This has been a subject in the air for several years. This debate will take place," said the new Minister of Culture, Rima Abdul Malak, in an interview with Le Parisien.
Once fixed "the basic priorities (...), we will discuss the organization. And see if this should be done by a merger or by more flexible methods allowing synergies to be developed", she added. .
"This speech does not take into account our specificities. At RFI, we broadcast in 13 languages, and France 24, in 4 languages. France Médias Monde speaks to the whole world and we must be able to exist independently of France Télévisions, whose the leaders don't know who we are and how we work," said Sabine Mellet, journalist at RFI and SNJ-CGT delegate.
Arrival in front of the National Assembly where deputies of the Nupes mainly are to support the demonstrators.
pic.twitter.com/frfRkltvc4
— Romain Brunet (@romain2dc) June 28, 2022
At 2 p.m., the procession was welcomed under the sun, behind the Palais Bourbon, by deputies from the New People's Ecological and Social Union (Nupes) who had come to support the strikers.
Danielle Simonnet, Olivier Faure, Julien Bayou, Sandrine Rousseau, Mathilde Panot, François Ruffin, Adrien Quatennens or Clémentine Autain are present.
During this time, the antennas of the radios and television channels of the public audio-visual one were largely disturbed throughout the day.
The music was on full swing on France Info, France Inter and France Culture, with three-quarters of Radio France journalists scheduled to work on Tuesday being on strike, according to the SNJ union.
Internal sources at France Télévisions identified 45% of strikers in all trades within the France 3 network, "never seen", and 25% at the Paris headquarters.
As a result, on France 2, the 1 p.m. news, "solidarity" with the movement, was shortened and extracts from Télématin were rebroadcast instead of the morning show, a first in 30 years.
Banners also announced the disruption of the Franceinfo and France 24 channels.
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