Raise the alarm and act against destabilization attempts by foreign powers. Emmanuel Maron dedicates this beginning of the week, Tuesday, October 28 and Wednesday, October 29, to the fight against interference in the era of social networks, as BFMTV learned from the Elysée.
“(The events) will mark the week around a theme: democracy against social networks and foreign interference. It is a fight that the President of the Republic has been fighting for a long time, who participates in the campaign,” underlines the castle, in reference to the hacking suffered in 2017 by the teams of Emmanuel Macron, who was then campaigning for his first presidential elections. French diplomacy accuses Russian military intelligence of having been in charge.
The presidential palace reports that “for several months” there has been an “acceleration of the destructuring of public debate with the increase in the power of social networks as a source of information.” Emmanuel Macron’s fear is that the multiplication of these disinformation campaigns endangers democracy.
Alert about the 2026 and 2027 elections
“The President of the Republic believes that he must continue to address this issue” to allow the holding of “a debate that is as informed as possible for the upcoming electoral events,” adds the Elysée, citing the municipal elections of 2026 and the presidential elections of 2027.
“Currently, there are many risks that can influence these deadlines. When we look at what happened in Romania or elsewhere, we see that the risk of distortion of public space is very high,” adds the presidential palace.
The Paris Peace Forum this Wednesday
A first highlight is planned for Tuesday, October 28, around 11 a.m., at the presidential palace, with a meeting of actors involved in the issue of interference, researchers, experts such as sociologist Gérald Bronner, local elected officials and parliamentarians. In the afternoon, a “Mental Health Tips” dedicated to the effects of exposure to screens and social networks will take place in the same place.
Finally, in the evening a dinner will be offered in the company of actors from the new technology sector to discuss, in particular, the regulation of social networks and Artificial Intelligence.
This Wednesday, October 29, the Peace Forum will take place at the Chaillot Palace in Paris, where decision makers from around the world will meet to work on important geopolitical issues.
“The President of the Republic will intervene for several months in these civilizing and even anthropological issues that are of great concern to the French,” he assures BFMTV of the Elysée, who sees it as “a turning point” but has not yet communicated the path he could take (referendum, legal text or other). “The full range of tools is available and open.”
Source: BFM TV
