Whether alongside the French army in Estonia, or in the shoes of a humanitarian, Mister Geopolitix is ​​also active on Instagram and TikTok, alongside a few other French youtubers present on these subjects.

"70% of my community is between 18 and 35 years old", underlines the 32-year-old young man who, wearing his khaki green shirt, becomes Mister Geopolitix in his apartment in Asnières (92), which serves as his studio.

In his videos, which last between 15 and 45 minutes, he makes massive use of maps and slips in references to popular series like Narcos, to seduce an audience more accustomed to entertainment than to geopolitical reporting.

"The visuals are magnificent and he is the only one who does field reporting", underlines Vincent Lièvre, a 23-year-old student who has been following him since 2017, and who also gets information via traditional media.

If her audience is rather male, Charlotte Wyn, 20, has been watching Mister Geopolitix videos for three years.

She appreciates that he does not impose a personal opinion: "I can form my own opinion" and "it's still fun".

"I deal with a subject when I have added value to bring. That's why I did not talk about the war in Ukraine", recognizes the one who considers himself above all as a popularizer.

If he travels for certain subjects, he also works a lot from France.

Digesting numerous books, documentaries and reports to prepare his videos, he also interviews experts.

"Preconceptions"

"It's good to have content adapted to a younger audience with a popularization effort", underlines Marc Hecker, researcher at the French Institute of International Relations (Ifri) who spoke twice on the Mister Geopolitix channel.

Qualities also praised by Pierre Razoux, academic director of the Mediterranean Foundation for Strategic Studies (FMES): "His goal is to pass on the most balanced information possible while putting himself within the reach of his audience, largely made up of high school students and young students.

Youtuber Gildas Leprince, known as Mister Geopolitix, on January 18, 2023 in Asnières-sur-Seine, near Paris © Thomas SAMSON / AFP

It is also a way of fighting against "preconceived ideas on the internet", he underlines, welcoming the 170,000 views achieved by his video with Mister Geopolitix.

Unlike these specialists, Gildas Leprince did not study international relations.

After a master's degree in economics of developing countries, he embarked on a nine-month journey to discover the geopolitical issues of the Mediterranean basin.

“At that time, French popularizers like Nota Bene or Cyrus North started to have a good audience on Youtube,” he recalls.

A source of inspiration that decided him to launch Mister Geopolitix on his return in 2016.

Bartender then lifeguard at the same time, this autodidact sees his income increase as he gains audience, but not only.

If he uses traditional product placements, part of his remuneration comes from publishing projects.

Geopolitical immersion

Thanks to this heterogeneous economic model, Gildas Leprince has lived 100% from Mister Geopolitix since 2019 and has been able to realize his "dream": to do reporting.

In Egypt, Mexico and even in the Arctic, Mister Geopolitix has produced a dozen "geopolitical adventures".

His most viewed video: a report with the French soldiers fighting against illegal gold panning in Guyana.

Since 2015 and a partnership with the youtubeur TiboInShape, the French army regularly opens its doors to content creators.

Youtuber Gildas Leprince, known as Mister Geopolitix, on January 18, 2023 in Asnières-sur-Seine, near Paris © Thomas SAMSON / AFP

"We know that this is what people watch and it allows us to reach a different audience", explains Yann Gravethe, director of the Defense Information and Communication Delegation (DICoD).

Embedded content that is not a concern for Gildas Leprince: "I am not paid and it allows me to approach areas where I could not have gone alone".

With a new studio being finalized, Mister Geopolitix is ​​preparing a series of reports on the migration issue.

This always with the same ambition: to discover geopolitical issues to its subscribers.

© 2023 AFP