News à la française

Paris

The French government this week launched its own version of CNN. The new, 24-hour satellite news station, France 24, will broadcast simultaneously on two channels—one in French and one in English—and an Arabic channel will be added next year. Alain de Pouzilhac, the station's head, said its mission was to present the news "through French eyes" and to promote "French values" such as cultural diversity and a love of debate. "BBC World and CNN are marvelously professional, but they inevitably convey a British or an American view," he said. Funded by the government, France 24 has an annual operating budget of just $114 million, compared with $856 million for the privately owned CNN.