French Culture Minister Catherine Pégard warned on Friday against what she described as a witch hunt, after staff at the public broadcaster Radio France objected to the arrival of a senior editor from the right-wing weekly Valeurs actuelles as a commentator on France Inter.
Speaking on the radio station RTL, Pégard said that putting someone on trial for their supposed intentions was unpleasant, and that a witch hunt is always unpleasant. She said that since the broadcaster had chosen this columnist, his words should be heard, provided they amounted to neither hate speech nor political combat.
Pégard said France Inter's house should remain open, and that editorialists are there to express their own opinion, not necessarily that of the publications they work for. She said she saw this pluralism respected in France Inter's new season, and argued that during an election year there should be room for debate.
Charles Sapin's arrival at France Inter
France Inter, France's most-listened-to radio station, has been in turmoil since it announced that Charles Sapin, the new deputy editor-in-chief of Valeurs actuelles, would deliver a political editorial every Sunday. Valeurs actuelles is a French weekly magazine known for its conservative and nationalist editorial line. France Inter is the flagship station of Radio France, the country's public radio broadcasting group.
Unions file strike notice
Radio France's joint union body has filed a strike notice for Sunday, September 13, and Monday, September 14, demanding that Sapin's column be withdrawn. In a motion adopted unanimously on Wednesday, Radio France staff voiced what they called their categorical refusal of Sapin's arrival on air, arguing that the values carried by his magazine were not compatible with those of the public broadcaster.
Management defends pluralism
Radio France's management has justified the decision in the name of pluralism. At the broadcaster's start-of-season press conference on Thursday, its president, Sibyle Veil, said she stood by giving a platform to people who do not think the same way.
The dispute has become one of the most closely watched media stories of the French broadcasting season, pitting the public broadcaster's editorial leadership against its own newsroom over how far pluralism should extend on state-funded airwaves.
