Petition on French National Assembly Website Reaches 553,474 Signatures: Call to Remove CNews From French Broadcasting Crosses 500,000-Signature Debate Threshold
PARIS, November 2 — A petition calling for French news channel CNews to be removed from French broadcasting passed 500,000 signatures on the French National Assembly's website on Monday, November 2, reaching the threshold at which the National Assembly can organize a public debate. Reuters reported that by 1434 GMT on November 2, the petition had attracted 553,474 signatures.
According to Reuters on November 2, the petition to "remove CNews from French broadcasting" was started on June 10, 2026. It argues that CNews, owned by conservative billionaire Vincent Bollore, is not an information channel but "a propaganda machine." CNews is known for its hard line on immigration and crime. Critics say the channel's agenda increasingly follows the lines taken by Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally, from which the channel could benefit if, as polls suggest, Le Pen wins the 2027 presidential election and fulfils her promise to privatise public broadcasting.
Under National Assembly rules, a public debate can be organised if a petition attracts at least 500,000 signatures, but a commission must first review the petition and decide whether a debate can take place. Reuters said CNews could not be immediately reached for comment. CNews rose from a 1% market share at its 2017 launch to profitability last year, when it became France's most-watched free-to-air news channel; viewership has slipped this year as the Iran war has aided rivals, but its influence endures.
(Source: Reuters)
Source: Reuters
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 法国国民议会所在地波旁宫，巴黎。 The Palais Bourbon in Paris, home of the French National Assembly. 公共领域，图片来源：Wikimedia Commons。 Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
