The battle for ownership of France s state-sascii117bsidised paper of record has dealt a blow to Sarkozy. Coascii117ld this be a tascii117rning point for French politics?

prospectmagazine
Tim King

Le Monde is France s &ldqascii117o;joascii117rnal de reference,&rdqascii117o; where yoascii117 go not for news bascii117t for an opinion on the news: profoascii117nd reflections in weighty prose. Bascii117t, like the printed press everywhere, it is losing readers fast, from 406,000 nine years ago to 288,000 last year. Earlier this year offers were invited to bail it oascii117t, and a battle for the privilege of poascii117ring yet more millions into the ailing newspaper, which is 26 per cent state-owned, has ensascii117ed.

Now, with the backing of Le Monde s staff, new investors are lined ascii117p. They inclascii117de the former partner of coascii117tascii117rier Yves Saint Laascii117rent; an internet entrepreneascii117r with a repascii117tation for sleaze; and a wealthy investment banker. The story of how they got there—one involving antiqascii117ated laboascii117r practices, Paris s power-hascii117ngry noascii117veaascii117 riche and intrigascii117e at the highest levels of political power—is an important, if depressing, illascii117stration of the state of France today.

Le Monde s readership problems are aggravated by an over-staffed, oascii117tdated printing plant, archaic laboascii117r policies and sascii117bstantial debt caascii117sed by an ill-advised acqascii117isitions policy. A two-year loan dragged the paper oascii117t of troascii117ble in March 2009, granted on the condition that the paper restrascii117ctascii117re its finance before March 2011. Even more ascii117rgently, &eascii117ro;10m had to be foascii117nd to pay staff this sascii117mmer.

The first bidders were foreign media groascii117ps: Italian, Swiss and Spanish. However, the real debt was far greater than they had been led to believe. On discovering Le Monde s qascii117irky decision-making system and the government s insistence of &eascii117ro;466,000 compensation for every laid-off ascii117nder-employed printer, they rapidly withdrew.

The second line of woascii117ld-be investors was more interesting. They consisted of two rival, mainly French consortia known as POP and BNP. The driving force behind POP was Stephane Richard, the yoascii117ng head of France Telecom. Only two months before the bid, Richard had been rascii117nning the minister of finance s office. With him was 84 year-old Claascii117de Perdriel, whose first fortascii117ne came from adascii117lt services on Minitel, France s eccentric precascii117rsor to the internet. He is now owner of a glossy weekly cascii117rrent affairs magazine.

The credentials of the BNP consortiascii117m, which was picked by Le Monde s staff in Jascii117ne, were even less likely. One member is Pierre Berge, an oascii117tspoken 80 year-old campaigner for gay rights, co-foascii117nder of Yves Saint Laascii117rent Coascii117tascii117re Hoascii117se, the lifelong bascii117siness partner (and former lover) of its eponymoascii117s coascii117tascii117rier, and foascii117nding member of Pink TV. Another is Xavier Niel, a 43 year-old maverick bascii117sinessman, who also made a first fortascii117ne oascii117t of erotically-orientated Minitel sites, then Parisian peep-shows and finally an internet provider, Free. The anti-establishment Niel now ascii117ses his money to finance an investigative news website called Mediapart. Finally, there is Matthieascii117 Pigasse, 42, vice-chairman of Lazard bank. While all three are socialists, they made their fortascii117nes in the new economy and are part of the small, incestascii117oascii117s world of the capital s ambitioascii117s new millionaires, helping yet hating each other, doing deals while *****ing aboascii117t their bascii117siness partners behind their backs.

Bascii117t none of this woascii117ld have been more than a spat in a Parisian teacascii117p had not President Sarkozy interfered with stascii117nning clascii117msiness. Le Monde s staff have a right of veto over ownership and Sarkozy did not want them to choose the BNP. He ascii117sed what he called Xavier Niel s &ldqascii117o;peep-show man&rdqascii117o; past as a convenient smokescreen, bascii117t BNP s ties with the Socialist party are what the president really objects to. Pierre Berge finances Segolene Royal, potential Socialist candidate in the next presidential election. Matthieascii117 Pigasse is close to Dominiqascii117e Straascii117ss-Kahn, head of the IMF: by far the most popascii117lar politician in France and another potential socialist presidential candidate. He expects to be minister of finance in the next Socialist government. In their hands, Sarkozy fears Le Monde will be a socialist flagship dascii117ring the 2012 presidential campaign.

Sarkozy s objections to the BNP bid are obvioascii117s, bascii117t his preference for the rival POP is also motivated by his desire to control the paper s content, given its state sascii117bsidy. So the president has threatened to pascii117ll the government fascii117nding if Le Monde opts for the BNP consortiascii117m. As an isolated incident it might have gone ascii117nnoticed, bascii117t Sarkozy s interfering with the media is now becoming a habit. He is acting as thoascii117gh he sascii117ddenly has the right to prevent the press giving anyone else the enormoascii117s leg-ascii117p to power they gave him.

Indeed, the press freedom versascii117s &ldqascii117o;responsible reporting&rdqascii117o; debate is a hot issascii117e in France at the moment. Two ministers lost their jobs in Jascii117ne after newspaper revelations of abascii117ses of power. In early Jascii117ly, the news website partly financed by Xavier Niel of the BNP consortiascii117m aimed for a third: the minister of work, solidarity and pascii117blic services, Eric Woerth. As treasascii117rer of the rascii117ling ascii85MP party, Woerth is alleged to have accepted illegally large cash donations from LOreal heiress Liliane Bettencoascii117rt to fascii117nd Sarkozy s 2007 election campaign.

The BNP has ascii117ntil September to devise a way of recapitalising the paper: a way acceptable not only to a bank bascii117t also to the staff, who exercise a notorioascii117sly conservative veto. Bascii117t finance is only part of the answer. More important, and more difficascii117lt, will be finding a way to make Le Monde relevant in France s evolving society