https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from France in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed Does French President Emmanuel Macron really want to create a 1984-style 'Ministry of Truth', as his right-wing opponents claim? Not quite, here's what is actually being proposed to fight fake news in France. https://www.thelocal.fr/20251203/a-french-ministry-of-truth-behind-the-row-over-macrons-media-label-talk Wed, 03 Dec 2025 18:49:51 +0100 a-french-ministry-of-truth-behind-the-row-over-macrons-media-label-talk The trailer for the newest instalment of the global hit video game Call of Duty is out - and it stars a 58-year-old French chef from Bordeaux. https://www.thelocal.fr/20251029/star-french-chef-in-call-of-duty-video-game-trailer Wed, 29 Oct 2025 16:41:06 +0100 star-french-chef-in-call-of-duty-video-game-trailer Why do the guardians of the fourth estate in France seem so reticent to name those in the dock? https://www.thelocal.fr/20241220/why-are-convicted-criminals-not-always-fully-named-in-french-court-trials Fri, 20 Dec 2024 18:09:04 +0100 why-are-convicted-criminals-not-always-fully-named-in-french-court-trials Hundreds of demonstrators rallied late on Thursday outside a top French television station to protest the broadcast of an interview with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the Gaza war. https://www.thelocal.fr/20240531/hundreds-protest-netanyahu-interview-broadcast-in-france Fri, 31 May 2024 10:22:09 +0200 hundreds-protest-netanyahu-interview-broadcast-in-france The European Commission has launched an investigation into whether French media group Vivendi breached rules before sealing its acquisition of publishing and retail conglomerate Lagardere. https://www.thelocal.fr/20230726/european-commission-probes-french-media-groups-publisher-deal Wed, 26 Jul 2023 10:54:47 +0200 european-commission-probes-french-media-groups-publisher-deal When they were young they were the heart-throbs of France's small screen but after many rounds of plastic surgery and botox, the controversial Bogdanoff twins came to be considered 'freakish' by many. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180622/the-bogdanoff-twins-whats-the-story-behind-frances-controversial-former-tv-heart-throbs Fri, 22 Jun 2018 12:38:02 +0200 the-bogdanoff-twins-whats-the-story-behind-frances-controversial-former-tv-heart-throbs Billionaire Vincent Bolloré's bid to shake up the French news media by catering to conservative and right-wing voters is facing resistance from journalists at his next target, one of the country's biggest private radio stations. https://www.thelocal.fr/20210623/french-radio-journalists-strike-in-protest-over-plans-to-merge-with-frances-fox-news Wed, 23 Jun 2021 16:58:45 +0200 french-radio-journalists-strike-in-protest-over-plans-to-merge-with-frances-fox-news A series of issues including attacks on journalists covering protests and a highly controversial new law limiting the filming of police officers has seen France fall two places in the world press freedom index. Now a new report proposes 32 measures to improve the relationship between police and the press. https://www.thelocal.fr/20210505/how-france-plans-to-improve-relations-between-police-and-the-press Wed, 05 May 2021 16:41:27 +0200 how-france-plans-to-improve-relations-between-police-and-the-press France on Sunday condemned an "arbitrary" crackdown against the media in Belarus after the accreditation of several journalists working for foreign media was withdrawn in the wake of disputed presidential elections. https://www.thelocal.fr/20200830/france-slams-arbitrary-crackdown-on-media-in-belarus Sun, 30 Aug 2020 20:27:26 +0200 france-slams-arbitrary-crackdown-on-media-in-belarus Valerie Trierweiler, the ex-girlfriend of former French president François Hollande, said on Thursday that she had been sacked by Paris Match magazine. https://www.thelocal.fr/20200813/french-presidents-ex-girlfriend-says-she-has-been-sacked-by-magazine Thu, 13 Aug 2020 14:36:32 +0200 french-presidents-ex-girlfriend-says-she-has-been-sacked-by-magazine Armed with his computer and a video camera, former French politician Mike Borowski has emerged as a test case for social media companies under pressure to crack down on "fake news" ahead of next month's European Parliament vote. https://www.thelocal.fr/20190407/profile-far-right-partisan-journalist-mike-borowski Sun, 07 Apr 2019 11:31:20 +0200 profile-far-right-partisan-journalist-mike-borowski Phil Chetwynd was named global news director of Agence France-Presse (AFP) Wednesday, the first non-French person to hold the key post at the country's global news agency. https://www.thelocal.fr/20190109/briton-takes-top-news-post-at-afp-for-first-time Wed, 09 Jan 2019 18:23:15 +0100 briton-takes-top-news-post-at-afp-for-first-time The French government said on Thursday that it would demand 190 million euros of spending cuts at its public broadcasting operations by 2022 as part of President Emmanuel Macron's pledge to improve state finances. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180720/france-seeks-190-million-of-public-broadcasting-cuts Fri, 20 Jul 2018 10:36:47 +0200 france-seeks-190-million-of-public-broadcasting-cuts Russia's state media regulator Roskomnadzor has accused France 24 news channel of violating Russian media laws, after Paris issued a warning to the French arm of Moscow's broadcaster RT https://www.thelocal.fr/20180629/russia-accuses-france-24-news-channel-of-breaking-media-law-regulator Fri, 29 Jun 2018 19:27:04 +0200 russia-accuses-france-24-news-channel-of-breaking-media-law-regulator French newspapers and magazines continue to be handed hundreds of millions of euros in state subsidies each year, despite being owned by billionaires. This largesse is supposed to boost democracy, but its critics argue that it leads to a submissive media, writes Rory Mulholland. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180131/a-submissive-press-should-state-handouts-to-french-newspapers-be-scrapped Wed, 31 Jan 2018 14:34:41 +0100 a-submissive-press-should-state-handouts-to-french-newspapers-be-scrapped French President Emmanuel Macron announced plans Wednesday for legislation to stop fake news spreading online in the run-up to elections, in a veiled reference to Moscow-backed RT and Sputnik. https://www.thelocal.fr/20180104/france-announces-law-to-combat-fake-news-with-russian-meddling-in-mind Thu, 04 Jan 2018 10:47:18 +0100 france-announces-law-to-combat-fake-news-with-russian-meddling-in-mind A French court has sentenced a man who wounded a photographer in a shooting in 2013 to 25 years behind bars, in a case that predated the string of jihadist attacks that has since struck the country. https://www.thelocal.fr/20171125/france-media-attacker-jailed-for-25-years Sat, 25 Nov 2017 12:27:47 +0100 france-media-attacker-jailed-for-25-years The young French journalist Loup Bureau arrived back in Paris on Sunday, "tired but relieved", after being detained for more than seven weeks in a Turkish jail on terror charges. https://www.thelocal.fr/20170917/french-reporter-back-home-after-turkish-terror-charges Sun, 17 Sep 2017 16:44:23 +0200 french-reporter-back-home-after-turkish-terror-charges A young French reporter who has been held on terror charges in Turkey for the last seven weeks is set to be freed on Friday, his lawyers said. https://www.thelocal.fr/20170915/france-urges-erdogan-to-free-reporter-jailed-in-turkey Fri, 15 Sep 2017 12:54:11 +0200 france-urges-erdogan-to-free-reporter-jailed-in-turkey French president Emmanuel Macron has withdrawn a complaint lodged in August against a press photographer whom he claimed had 'harassed' him while he on holiday in Marseille. https://www.thelocal.fr/20170915/macron-withdraws-complaint-against-press-photographer-who-harrassed-him-on-holiday Fri, 15 Sep 2017 18:22:48 +0200 macron-withdraws-complaint-against-press-photographer-who-harrassed-him-on-holiday