All good things come in threes: CNN, Al-Jazeera and France24
There's a lot going on in the international news market. Al-Jazeera has just launched a full-service English-language channel to compete with CNN. Now, on December 6, France24—the first European news channel with 24-hour programming—will go on the air worldwide.
A lot is happening on the international news market. Al-Jazeera has just launched a full English program to compete with CNN. Now, on December 6, France24, the first European news channel with a 24-hour program, will go on air worldwide. According to Grégoire Deniau, Head of Information at France24, the French channel wants to "look at current affairs with more distance and present different points of view" between the Arab and Anglo-Saxon positions. This is a gap after the radicalization of the programs as a result of the New York terrorist attacks.
Although the channel is called France24, it will not take a decidedly French stance, but will show the confrontation of different positions. France24 is the brainchild of Jacques Chirac, but will not be influenced by any party or lobby, as channel president Alain de Pouzillac assures us. Compared to CNN's budget, which costs one billion francs a year for its program, the newcomer's budget is modest: 130 million francs.
Nevertheless, French diplomacy is providing generous support for the launch. This is also the case in Bern, where the French embassy hosted an aperitif to mark the launch of the channel on December 6. This was reported by the Basler Zeitung on Thursday.
Although the channel is called France24, it will not take a decidedly French stance, but will show the confrontation of different positions. France24 is the brainchild of Jacques Chirac, but will not be influenced by any party or lobby, as channel president Alain de Pouzillac assures us. Compared to CNN's budget, which costs one billion francs a year for its program, the newcomer's budget is modest: 130 million francs.
Nevertheless, French diplomacy is providing generous support for the launch. This is also the case in Bern, where the French embassy hosted an aperitif to mark the launch of the channel on December 6. This was reported by the Basler Zeitung on Thursday.
