Scandal and the Rise of Investigative Reporting in France

Bibliographic Data

ID3758697
AuthorsJean K Chalaby (0000-0002-8250-0361, City University, London, and University of Geneva, corresponding author)
Year2004
Volume47
Issue9
Pages1194-1207
Publication date2004-05-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueAmerican Behavioral Scientist (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0002-7642 • E-ISSN: 1552-3381
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/0002764203262343
OpenAlexW2086517248
LanguageEN
Citations received21
References cited6

Investigative reporting is a recent development in France, with the revelation of scandals becoming a legitimate practice for journalists only since the 1980s. To date, investigative reporting knows few practitioners and faces considerable obstacles. This article gives an account of its emergence and analyzes the reasons for its late development. The French journalistic tradition has long been influenced by literature and politics and therefore has not placed as much emphasis on the collection and exposition of facts as Anglo-American journalism. Until the 1980s, there was very little competition in the media field, acting as another disincentive for newspapers to seek out information. Until the beginning of the Fifth Republic, venality was widespread among French journalists, further hindering the revelation of scandals. Influential social theories prevented the personalization of politics, placing an emphasis on the systemic and collective causes of problems

Business · Competition (biology) · Exposition (narrative) · Journalism · Literature · Media studies · Newspaper · Personalization · Political science · Politics · Public relations · Revelation · Sociology · Cultural Insights and Digital Impacts · Law

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