Mélenchon tells a BFMTV reporter the channel should calm down on racist remarks
Jean-Luc MélenchonLeader of La France insoumise and its 2027 presidential candidate
Questioned by a BFMTV reporter during the October 24 march in Paris, Mélenchon cuts the question short and then tells the channel to go do racism on television and leave the marchers alone.
Responding to
In the week after the October 17 protests, racist remarks and false information were broadcast on BFMTV without objection from its management or its presenters, and this racism has direct consequences for society.
“And you, BFM, start calming down on racist remarks of every kind, because this is getting to be too much (Translated from French. Original: Et vous, BFM, commencez à vous calmer sur les remarques racistes de toute sorte, parce que ça commence à bien faire)”
Reporting
Reporting
Where this statement fits
Critics say BFMTV let racist remarks go unchallenged before the Trappes attack; the channel calls the accusations unfounded
On October 23, 2026, a gunman killed one person and wounded five in Trappes and La Verrière, west of Paris. France's anti-terrorism prosecutors opened an investigation for murder connected to a terrorist enterprise, with a racist aggravating circumstance, and Puremédias reports that according to the first findings the suspect wanted to avenge the looting of October 17 and chose his victims by skin color. That day, Trappes mayor Ali Rabeh said on BFMTV that the ideological discourse behind such attacks is also made on television sets. BFMTV cancelled an interview with Éric Zemmour planned for October 24. On October 24, Jean-Luc Mélenchon told a BFMTV reporter to calm down on racist remarks, and on October 25 deputy Louis Boyard said on the channel that politicians make racist remarks daily and that media give an unjust image of working-class neighborhoods. The SNJ and CGT unions at RMC BFM said racism now had a place on the channel's air. BFMTV said it would not accept being the target of pressure and denounced unfounded accusations against its journalists as a public smear campaign.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
Puremédias report written with AFP, in French. It quotes Jean-Luc Mélenchon's October 24 remark to a BFMTV reporter, Louis Boyard's comments on BFMTV on October 25, BFMTV's statement that evening rejecting the accusations, and the statement by the SNJ and CGT unions at RMC BFM.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Reporting
About this source
Puremédias report, in French, on BFMTV reporters being confronted at an October 24 rally in Trappes for the victims of the attack. It quotes the channel's journalists' society and management, Trappes mayor Ali Rabeh's criticism of BFMTV on air on October 23, and Jean-Luc Mélenchon's remark to a BFMTV reporter in Paris on October 24.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
The AFP report published by Puremédias says the reporter had asked Mélenchon about responses to the high school students' movement.
After the quotation
Puremédias reports that BFMTV said on October 25 that it would not accept being the target of pressure or being used for political ends.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The case concerns whether BFMTV let racist remarks go unchallenged on air before the Trappes attack, as its critics say. Mélenchon accuses the channel of racist remarks and tells it to stop, which condemns the conduct under scrutiny.
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More from this case
Read the full caseBFMTV calls the accusations against its journalists unfounded
BFMTV
“denounces the unfounded accusations made over the past 48 hours against its air and its journalists, victims of a public smear campaign, notably around Sonia Mabrouk (Translated from French. Original: dénonce les accusations sans fondement proférées depuis 48 heures contre son antenne et ses journalistes, victimes d'une campagne de dénigrement publique notamment autour de Sonia Mabrouk)”Read statement
Louis Boyard faults media portrayals of working-class neighborhoods on BFMTV
“You have politicians who make racist remarks every day, but you also have media that give such an unjust image of working-class neighborhoods (Translated from French. Original: Vous avez des responsables politiques qui tiennent des propos racistes au quotidien, mais vous avez aussi des médias qui donnent une image des quartiers populaires qui est tellement injuste)”Read statement
CGT union at RMC BFM calls for an end to normalizing far-right ideas in its media
CGT RMC BFM
“Let us take our responsibilities. Let us stop normalizing far-right ideas in our media. (Translated from French. Original: Prenons nos responsabilités. Arrêtons de banaliser les idées d'extrême droite dans nos médias.)”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Mélenchon tells a BFMTV reporter the channel should calm down on racist remarks". First published: 2026-10-31. Last updated: 2026-10-31. https://disputeindex.com/events/7549-questioned-by-a-bfmtv-reporter-during-the-october