After having fought last week on the program Touche pas à mon poste regarding the arrival of migrants in France, the host Cyril Hanouna and the deputy Louis Boyard (LFI) announced legal proceedings one once morest the other. A scandal that might have legal and political consequences.
The scene took place on Thursday during a debate entitled “Should we welcome the boat of 234 migrants to France?” which focused on the situation of the humanitarian ship Ocean Viking finally welcomed Friday in the French port of Toulon.
Participants had to vote with YES or NO signs on the reception of these migrants. When his turn came, the young deputy of La France Insoumise Louis Boyard, himself a former columnist for TPMP, said he was in favor of this reception.
>> Listen to the details of Alexandre Habay in Tout un monde on the role of Cyril Hanouna in the French public debate:
Charges once morest Vincent Bolloré
The situation escalated when the latter claimed that the “five richest people” in France “are the same people who impoverish France and they impoverish Africa”, citing in particular “the example” of the billionaire and man French businessman Vincent Bolloré at the head of a media fortress in France which notably includes Canal+ and the CNews and C8 channels, where TPMP is broadcast. The deputy notably accused him of having “deforested Cameroon”.
Louis Boyard mentioned the case of 145 Cameroonians dismissed last January by French justice when they wanted to force the Bolloré group to provide documents supposed to establish its links with a Cameroonian company which they accuse of attacking their rights.
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“Excuse me my darling, you know you’re in the Canal group here, you know you’re in the Bolloré group here”, then replies Cyril Hanouna. “What are you doing here then? Bolloré gave you money, you were a columnist here”, he adds, before accusing the deputy of having come “to make a coup of brilliance”. “You are a shit”, will launch the host, also treating the deputy of “moron”, “jester” and “cob”. All this under the eyes of his chroniclers who did not hesitate to attack the young elected.
“Do you realize that we have no right to criticize Bolloré?”, then replied the deputy before finally leaving the set under the boos of the public.
Complaint for insults
The French parliamentarian announced Monday at a press conference that he would “file a complaint” for these insults live. “Whether you are a deputy or not, a presenter does not have to insult someone live for having criticized the owner of his channel”, Vincent Bolloré, insisted the Insoumis deputy, all this while accusing the man of French business to be “the embodiment of Françafrique”. “It is essential that the media maintain their independence from these billionaires,” said the LFI deputy.
On his return to the air on Monday evening in Touche pas à mon poste, Cyril Hanouna indicated in turn that he would sue Louis Boyard for defamation. “Know that we too will take action. And we will attack for what he may have said and all the defamation he has had once morest us,” said the host at the end of a program entirely devoted to “the case”, where all the columnists united behind their leader.
Coming to the TPMP set on Monday, several right-wing and far-right deputies criticized Cyril Hanouna’s insults, but reserved their harshest words for Louis Boyard.
Political consequences?
On Monday, during his press conference, Louis Boyard recalled that his group had tabled a bill to “put an end to concentration in the media”, by “limiting shareholders’ access to the capital of the major media through of a right of approval”. He also asked Cyril Hanouna to “organize a debate” on his show “regarding Bolloré’s actions in Africa”.
For its part, the National Assembly, which is also not lacking in brilliance, might have to decide on the opening of a commission of inquiry into the influence of the Bolloré empire.
fgn with agencies
