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09/08/2011A brief guide to French TV channels

A brief guide to French TV channels French TV stations are available via terrestrial link, cable and satellite. The main channels are terrestrial, here's an introduction to what six of them have to offer.

TF1

This privately-run media is one of the two most popular channels, the other being state-funded France 2. TF1, owned by the Bouygues construction group, is awash with reality, game and variety shows, regular movies (generally box office hits, French and US, and two or more years old) and soaps. Its news coverage, especially for breaking news, is generally sharper than its rivals (main news bulletin at 20.00).

TF1 has become the devil incarnated for French intellectuals who resent its populist programming and teethy stars on sky-high salaries. Nevertheless, it is slick and competent in what it does, and occasionally produces quality current affairs or cultural debates.   

France 2

This is the state-run challenger to TF1, competing at the same level, but with many more quality programmes. While it plays against TF1 with reality and game shows, recent movies and cops and robbers series, it also has many high-quality current affairs slots, documentaries, literary and sports programmes. The main 20.00 news, which lasts 45 minutes, runs against that of TF1.
France 3

This is France 2's little sister, a national state-funded channel based on a regional network of studios. It’s ploughed resources into quality programming, especially current affairs, and is a more informative alternative to France 2, with many niche programmes from sport to current affairs to foreign films with subtitles.

Its news service has unique access to the coverage of its regional bureaux, and a regular weekday 19.00 news programme offers a round-up of local news, specific to each region.

Canal Plus

Launched in the 1980s, Canal Plus is a pay-channel, with a yearly subscription for a decoder box, and specialises in recent films (offering several dozen each month, repeated at different times and including foreign films in original version/French subtitled) and a wide coverage of sports events. It has unique coverage of all the French football league matches.

It also runs lengthy and generally high-quality documentaries, including non-French productions, and is home to the famous 'guignols de l'information' political puppet satire programme.

France 5

This is a channel based on educational programming, and the Franco-German channel Arte, which takes over later in the evening and includes productions from both countries, from documentaries to films and many thematic studio discussion programmes. France 5 is unconcerned with mass viewing figures but rather target a small but stable audience.

The channel provides an interesting alternative to the mainstream French broadcasters, and it is the only one to regularly provide a whole evening's programming of films, debate and documentary based around one particular subject. 

M6

Its typical audience is 18 – 36 year-olds and began as a cheap music channel mostly running pop-music clips. Since those shaky beginnings, it has added US soaps and horror movies and, notably, built-up a serious and interesting offering of current affairs programmes which have claimed a place as 'must' viewing for news junkies.

It is perhaps too much of a disparate mix to ever be other than a channel to zap in and out of. It does, however, offer a varied and attractive easy-viewing alternative, above all for a younger audience, to the staple populist diet of TF1 


2 reactions to this article

Jack Preston posted: 2008-10-03 10:55:27

Where do I see documentaries on chinese demons?

melodie posted: 2011-09-26 18:25:37

I don't know if Alain G. Harvey is the author of this article. If so, no problem. If not, then he "borrowed" your text without asking. I'm just checking because he has stolen a friend's article before (https://www.facebook.com/notes/alain-g-harvey/10-little-known-facts-about-france/10150310648118454 was written by http://www.eurotriptips.com/ )

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2 reactions to this article

Jack Preston posted: 2008-10-03 10:55:27

Where do I see documentaries on chinese demons?

melodie posted: 2011-09-26 18:25:37

I don't know if Alain G. Harvey is the author of this article. If so, no problem. If not, then he "borrowed" your text without asking. I'm just checking because he has stolen a friend's article before (https://www.facebook.com/notes/alain-g-harvey/10-little-known-facts-about-france/10150310648118454 was written by http://www.eurotriptips.com/ )

Add a comment
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