Paris Watch
Daily Newspapers Show Real Life of France
By KIKI YOSHIDA
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フランス知りたきゃ新聞読もう
フランスは活字メディアの種類が多く、ル・モンド紙など世界的に有名な新聞のほか、3,000種類もの雑誌が刊行されています。それぞれのメディアは個性を持っており、読書好きな筆者は目移りすることもしばしば。今週はその活字メディア事情を見てみます。
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Newspapers and magazines are my daily essentials. In
Japan I used to buy a couple of different daily papers
and dozens of magazines. I used to live in London, and
still read "The Sunday Times" from time to time.
When I first settled in Paris in 1997, I couldn't
understand French. For someone who loves reading, it was
a tough situation. I had brought Japanese and English
books with me, but I had lost the pleasure of reading
local daily papers. That fact fueled my motivation
to learn French.
For starters, I began reading women's magazines, which
is a highly successful category of the French print
media. These publications have managed to develop a
faithful corps of readers and advertisers. "ELLE" and
"Marie Claire" are even published in Japan. I am not a
follower of fashion but the information they contain are
quite useful to follow trends.
There are more than 3,000 magazines — this figure is
thought to be the largest for any country — published in
France. Above all, television guide magazines have a
substantial circulation. Competition is fierce
among these TV weeklies such as "Tele 7 Jours,"
"Tele Star," and "TeleZ."
Other specialized magazines on cuisine or housing
decorations have amazing qualities. Flip the pages
and you will get great satisfaction from those
magnificent photos.
You might have heard the name "Paris Match." This
magazine, founded in 1949, features current events,
culture and stories on celebrities around the globe.
Its photos have constituted a large part of its
success. I still keep a memorial issue published right
after Jean Marais' death. All the pictures are really
beautiful. I call it a veritable album of the handsome
actor's life.
In France you can't buy magazines at the bookstore. You
have to get them at a newsstand or small store called
Presse.
Most Japanese people, first thing in the morning,
probably open newspapers that still smell of fresh ink. I
used to wake up earlier than anybody in my family to
enjoy this privilege. Unfortunately home delivery
service is not common in France. Maybe they prefer to go
to a regular newsstand or Presse. I miss reading papers
in the morning with tousled hair and no makeup.
Here are France's big three dailies: "Le Monde," "Le
Figaro" and "Libソration."
Le Monde is considered to be the best quality paper,
especially in the fields of politics and world news.
However, Le Monde has suffered a significant drop in
readership.
Le Figaro, which celebrated its 170th anniversary in
1996, is France's oldest daily. Although it had been
ultra-conservative for a long time, it has become more
liberal in recent years. Its real estate ads are also
well known for their usefulness. This is one of my
favorite papers and I never fail to buy Le Figaro on
Saturdays. The special weekend edition is sold with three
magazines (Le Figaro magazine, Madame Figaro and TV
magazine), which I enjoy reading during the weekend.
Libソration is a daily that was established by far-left
sympathizers in 1973. This paper is especially popular
among youngsters. Its format has been revamped
several times and, as a consequence, this small-sized
paper has attracted more readers.
Nowadays I see many people reading "Le Parisien" at
cafソs in the metro, on the street, or literally
anywhere. This paper had a period when circulation fell
but with the change of style, sales rose considerably.
Actually Le Parisien initially taught me French. It's
written in plain French and each article is rather
short. I think it's a good paper to grasp what's going
on. However, you might feel that information is
inadequate if you are a regular reader of Le Monde or
Le Figaro.
Another daily I can't forget to mention is "L'Equipe."
Founded in 1946, this sports paper has gained a large
number of readers after the soccer World Cup. Since
France's victory at the World Cup in 1998, more and more
French people have gotten interested in soccer. But what
is strange to me is that it is the only sports paper in
France.
I bought it a few times and learned that French sports
journalism is nothing like in Japan. Unlike Japanese
papers, there are no gossip or nasty articles. L'Equipe
follows pure sportsmanship.
Naturally the newspaper covers domestic affairs in
detail. Therefore, reading French papers is not
appropriate for finding the latest news in Japan. But
if you want to know more about France, it is the best
way. By reading them intensively, the characteristics
of a nation come into full view in front of you.
Shukan ST: July 7, 2000
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