Saviano guest of honor in France - Corriere.it

PARIS — For three days, from today to the day after tomorrow, Couthures sur Garonne, a small riverside village of 360 inhabitants not far from Bordeaux, becomes the capital of journalism for the international festival organized by the Le Monde group and L'Obs, with some local and European partners such as El Pas, The Guardian, Le Temps, Der Spiegel and Corriere della Sera. This year the guest of honor Roberto Saviano,who today will talk about the relationship between the media and the Meloni government and tomorrow about the journalistic coverage of the migrant crisis. Seven themes form the backbone of the festival: the revolt of women in Iran, threats to democracy, mental health, success and the metamorphosis of rugby (the occasion the next World Cup in France), artificial intelligence, the role of public service and information stress, a central topic after the succession of pandemics, the increase in climate risks, the war in Ukraine, the revolt against the pension reform in France and the recent riots after the killing of a boy in Nanterre.

The basic idea of ​​the festival break the barrier between media and audience,between the capital and the rest of the country, to create a space for exchange with dozens of debates and meetings. From the junior Festival for teenagers called upon to create journalistic services on Snapchat, to real journalism workshops for the adult public as well. The debates on artificial intelligence will address the issue of international competition, the role of the European Union as a possible regulatory body, the consequences on work, teaching and learning, and will also be discussed in the new movements that seek to stimulate a less passive and more man with digital tools. In the space dedicated to international correspondents, the image of France abroad and the protests against the pension reform will be discussed as a symptom of a new relationship with work, which is being rethought throughout the West.

Journalists and the public will discuss together the crisis of democracy on a global scale, from the temptations of a coup d'état in the USA and Brazil to illiberal democracy in Hungary and the rise of the extreme right and populism in many European countries. Space for reflection also on the mental health emergency after Covid:growth of depression caused by bipolar disorders, difficulty of the health service to offer answers in many countries (in France people affected by mental disorders are estimated at 13 million). We will then talk about the riots in Iran, the role of the Islamic veil in the power system of the ayatollahs, how women are central to the protest against the regime and how international and Iranian journalists cover the events. The Festival will be an opportunity to reflect on major contemporary issues but also on the profession, and on how journalists who deal with news channels 24 hours a day can avoid the effect of saturation and information anxiety, for themselves and for the public. The Rugby World Cup which will take place in France will provide the pretext to talk about an increasingly popular sport, which in France is abandoning its provincial dimension to move to large cities, and which on a global level is experiencing a growth crisis which it runs the risk of distancing it from its original values. Approximately 6,300 people attended the festival last year, plus the 1,500 who attended a day of the best of the event at the Villette in Paris in September.