When French media’s descent into disinformation

French public broadcaster France TV is set to air a new episode of Complément d’enquête this Thursday titled “Rumors and Underhand Blows: The Secret War Between France and Algeria.”

Provocative by design, the title promises scandal while revealing a deeper problem: the steady drift of public media away from rigorous journalism toward narratives echoing the French far right.

This is not investigative reporting, but a recurring exercise in distortion, where Algeria is used as a convenient target rather than a subject of balanced analysis. A broadcaster meant to uphold professionalism is once again giving space to voices whose notoriety is built on hostility, provocation and misinformation.

Such editorial choices are not new. This is the third time France Télévisions has directly attacked Algeria through fragile and questionable narratives, a pattern that risks further damaging Algerian-French relations.

The issue, ultimately, is not Algeria. It is a public media system seemingly willing to sacrifice ethics and credibility for ratings. Algeria needs no caricatures to assert itself, but parts of the French media still appear to need Algeria to cover up their own growing disarray.