Welcome to European Tribune. It's gone a bit quiet around here these days, but it's still going.
Display:
Le Monde has pretty much triangulated to the center right, and Libé from left to the center left. They are however much, much more read than the English financial press, at least in politics (French politicians simply don't speak English)

Un roi sans divertissement est un homme plein de misères
by linca (antonin POINT lucas AROBASE gmail.com) on Thu Sep 11th, 2008 at 08:35:18 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Sarko and the UMP won a majority. Are Libe and Le Monde to the left of Sarko - I'd say yes, with Libe well to the left. Le Monde's views dovetail with the right wing of the PS - i.e. it is center-left. Libe's views tend to be those of the middle and left of the PS, i.e. it is left.

You can argue that the right wing of the PS is really center-right. However, you then also have to accept that the French electorate tilts sharply right and simply doesn't want left wing policies.

by MarekNYC on Thu Sep 11th, 2008 at 01:36:45 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Le Monde is to the left of Sarko, but Sarko ain't exactly the left wing of the UMP. Le Monde was clearly for Balladur in 1995, for example.

Libe aims for the right wing of the PS, nowadays (for example they were for the Yes in the Constitution referendum). This has changed in the last few years. They are anti-Sarkozy, but increasingly (Euro-)liberal in their economics commentary. They are center left at best, in their current incarnation.

As for the French electorate - the 2007 presidential election represents the French opinion badly, as on the left it was skewed by the need to have somebody from the left in the second round. In 2002, and in various regional elections, people calling themselves Communist gathered 15% of the vote, with other parts of the left, like the Greens, getting another 10%... And the right wing of the PS has pretty much joined Sarko. The PS has bee to the right of its electorate for quite some time.

Un roi sans divertissement est un homme plein de misères

by linca (antonin POINT lucas AROBASE gmail.com) on Thu Sep 11th, 2008 at 03:04:05 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Display:

Occasional Series