French televised debate and the public service ethos

Abstract

As the French televisual landscape has been altered through privatisation and the advent of new channels, many commentators have posited a shift from paleo‐television to neo‐television, from viewer as citizen to viewer as consumer. This article argues that such a dichotomy is overly simplistic, suggesting instead that contemporary French public service broadcasting combines elements of both types of television. It goes on to examine two television discussion shows. Whilst acknowledging that no one programme can alone represent the remit of a particular channel, the article suggests that the longevity and popularity of these programmes makes them key products of their respective moments of production and consumption. Finally, the ways in which each programme constructs and represents the transformations and the ambivalence at the heart of French public service television in examined.