French Public Media Welcomes Sansal in a Move Aimed at Algeria
The French public media landscape has undergone a notable transformation in its approach to Algeria, its symbols, and its interests since Pope Leo XIV’s visit last week.
This visit marked the end of a period of tacit calm that had persisted for several weeks. The case of Boualem Sansal, pardoned in exchange for undisclosed guarantees, has become a strategic instrument for pursuing objectives now evident to observers.
Aside from the French private media, which is dominated by right-wing and far-right circles, targeting Algeria has become central to their agenda. What is striking now is the involvement of long-established public institutions, which previously maintained a reasonable level of professional ethics. Examples include the parliamentary television channel LCP, the public channel TV5 Monde, and, to a lesser extent, France TV.
Over the past four days and in recent interviews on the parliamentary channel and TV5 Monde, Boualem Sansal appeared to settle scores with Algerian authorities over his imprisonment. He was sentenced nearly a year ago to five years for harming national unity and state symbols, a conviction confirmed by a final court ruling.
Boualem Sansal’s resurgence in French public media, where he spread his controversial ideas, coincided with the exposure of his blatant opportunism. This opportunism was evident in his sudden and unethical shift from Gallimard, the publishing house that had a contract with him and had supported his work, to Grasset, which is owned by the far-right businessman Vincent Bolloré. Many French elites found this move scandalous, describing it as a betrayal of trust and integrity, motivated by a pursuit of wealth in exchange for fulfilling a role assigned to him by French lobbies that are hostile to Algeria.
The recent return of Sansal coincides with his professional scandal, which appears to be nothing more than an attempt to obscure the true purpose of his recent appearances on French public media. He has been used as a tool to target Algeria and its symbols. This situation arose after the successful visit of Pope Leo XIV and the failure of his potential mediation efforts to secure the release of French journalist Christophe Gleizes, who is currently serving a seven-year prison sentence for charges related to supporting and praising terrorism. The Algerians had already uncovered this manoeuvre when the French president visited the Pope just two days before his trip to Algeria.
After being pardoned by President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, following mediation by German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Boualem Sansal spoke openly and freely. French public channels that hosted him treated him as if he had just been released from prison. During the broadcasts, he voiced criticism of Algeria and its symbols, echoing statements he had made previously. This raises questions regarding the professional motivation for returning to these subjects, unless it was part of a pre-arranged agenda.
The questions directed at Sansal by French public television channels primarily addressed his controversial, unethical professional transition from Gallimard to the far-right publisher Grasset. This move is seen as quite significant, as it has sparked heated debates in France and triggered a cultural crisis at Grasset. The backlash has led to the resignation of 115 writers and the stepping down of its CEO, Olivier Nora, due to opposition from the staff regarding Sansal’s appointment. However, the real issue lies in allowing Sansal to disparage Algeria and its symbols over reasons that are no longer deemed relevant, and this is the manoeuvre.