France’s Most Degrading Talk Show Is Promoting Far-Right Politics
It’s easy to think of French public life as more highbrow than its US counterpart. But France’s top-rated talk show is fusing politics and entertainment — and it’s a key part of a billionaire-funded effort to normalize far-right talking points.
Cyril Hanouna on July 17, 2022 in Paris, France. (Tnani Badreddine / DeFodi Images via Getty Images)
If you had to imagine what France’s most-watched TV talk show looks like, you might think of something resembling the high-brow discussions hosted on the nation’s public airwaves — a place where guests debate topics like the legacy of Chopin, the future of EU integration, or the shifting depictions of the American dream in the films of Paul Thomas Anderson.
The reality is much grimmer.
According to ratings, France’s most popular talk show is a two-hour sludge of infotainment where topics are selected according to their traction on social media and their capacity for provocation. Typically, these range from a potpourri of pop culture happenings and blood-curdling crimes to trends on TikTok, Twitter, and Instagram with just a smidge of political news: welcome to the world of Touche Pas à Mon Poste! (literally “Don’t Touch My TV Set!” in English, a pun on the anti-racist slogan Touche Pas à Mon Pote!, “Don’t Touch My Pal!”), hosted weeknights by the jovial forty-eight-year-old Cyril Hanouna.
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