Two-day strike at Radio France against the arrival of Charles Sapin on France Inter

A two-day strike begins this Sunday at Radio France to protest against the arrival as columnist on France Inter of Charles Sapin, new deputy editorial director of the magazine Valeurs Acteurs, accused by the unions of promoting “nationalist ideas”. The inter-union (CFDT, CGT, FO, SNJ, SUD and Unsa) also calls listeners to a rally on Sunday at 2:00 p.m. in front of the Maison de la radio in Paris, headquarters of the public group.

Scheduled around 7:40 a.m., Charles Sapin's weekly column, the one that ignited the fuse, could not be broadcast, nor could the other France Inter morning shows, replaced by music. “Due to a call for a strike filed by all the trade union organizations representing Radio France requesting the withdrawal from the France Inter antenna of a political editorial provided by the deputy editorial director of Valeurs Acteurs, we are not able to broadcast all of our usual programs,” warned a message to listeners.

Disruptions due to the strike should be greater on Monday than on Sunday, a day which has fewer live broadcasts, estimated an internal source. Formerly of L'Opinion, Le Figaro and Le Point, Charles Sapin became number 2 of Valeurs Actuelles this summer. Since August 30, he has written a political column lasting a few minutes on Sunday morning around 7:40 a.m. on France Inter, the country's leading radio station.

Justified by the management in the name of pluralism in the run-up to the presidential election, this recruitment was immediately contested. In a motion adopted on September 2, staff expressed their “categorical refusal”, judging Current Values ​​“not compatible” with public service.

This magazine, which claims to be conservative, has been condemned several times in court, notably for having portrayed LFI elected official Danièle Obono as a slave in 2020. It was then directed by Geoffroy Lejeune, who moved to Journal du Dimanche (JDD) in 2023. The unions also highlight the presence among its shareholders of the billionaire Pierre-Edouard Stérin, the scarecrow of part of the far left.

Mobilization of personalities

On Saturday, in a column published by the newspaper Le Parisien, 300 personalities considered the recruitment of Charles Sapin by France Inter “revolting”. Among them, a number of cultural figures marked on the left, including the actresses Julie Gayet, Ariane Ascaride and Corinne Masiero, the singer Lio or the Nobel Prize winner for literature Annie Ernaux.

Questioned on air Thursday by the Radio France mediator, the director of France Inter, Céline Pigalle, once again defended this recruitment, deeming pluralism “fundamental” for a public radio station. She highlighted the arrival of other editorialists from media of various colors, the Nouvel Obs, Alternatives économique or the Financial Times.

According to her, Charles Sapin assured her that he had joined Current Values ​​“to change its editorial line”. “I think I can have confidence in him not to put the France Inter branch in danger,” declared Céline Pigalle. A few months before the presidential election, the affair took a political turn. At the beginning of September, Jean-Luc Mélenchon (LFI) saw in the recruitment of Charles Sapin a “colonization by fascists” and, conversely, Bruno Retailleau (LR) castigated the “sectarianism (of) the Radio France editorial staff”.