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Background to French Language Policy and its Impact on the Media

The aim of this article is to present the background and the strategies of French language policy and its impact on the media. The high point to date of language-protectionist efforts, Law 94-668 of August 1994 (loi Toubon), must be seen within the context of a series of developments whose roots have their origins in a time predating the French Revolution. Today, language policy also interferes with the language used on radio and TV — as per decree, lists of specialist French words designed as a replacement for Anglicisms are drawn up. More far-reaching aims originally intended by the loi Toubon, which were targeted specifically at the media, had to be abandoned after a complaint about infringement of the Constitution. Language policy and media policy are inextricably linked in France. This is also apparent from the political strategies employed to elevate French interests to a European plane. Analysing this process offers a theoretically based insight into French media policy in general.

Key Words: cultural and linguistic protectionism • European Union • France • language regulation • theory of media policy

European Journal of Communication, Vol. 12, No. 4, 479-509 (1997)
DOI: 10.1177/0267323197012004003


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