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Mr. Macron recently gave an interview to Variety magazine and answered questions from reporters in English. For Macron, who has a busy schedule, it is not easy to be interviewed. After all, the leader of one of Europe's largest economies is not only worried about the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the war in the Middle East, but also has to deal with the political crisis at home. Since the successful hosting of the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris, France's status as one of the world's cultural centers has once again come to the fore. The fourth season of "Emily in Paris" has brought the France and the indescribable charm of the French language to the audience. In addition, France is becoming increasingly competitive in artificial intelligence. France startup Mistral has emerged as a rising star, catching up with big tech companies like OpenAI and Google, and its found·er, Arthur Mensch, has just been named an "innovator" on Time magazine's "TIME 100 Next 2024" list. France's cultural boom, the potential dangers of AI, social media regulation – Macron sat down with reporters to talk about these topics. The French public may scoff at his lyrical speeches, but his interviews at the moment are trying to export France culture.
Interviews about culture
Macron was late before the interview. He was sorry for that. In fact, the interview was almost canceled after Iran's massive missile attacks on Israel led to an escalation of the regional conflict. Macron sat down and talked about the situation in the Middle East first: "The development of this situation is unexpected. Then he talked about pop culture, from France movies of the '60s and '70s, to competitors from Netflix streaming services to the influence of Taylor Swift ·. Although his expression was tired, he could not hide his excitement. Surprisingly, there is also some sincerity and humor. When the reporter asked "what advice do you have for the organizers of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics", Macron immediately showed a surprised expression and said: "Wow, I don't want to give any advice, just hold your own Olympics!" Look for something from your identity, your history, and even your paradoxes, to be yourself. After the reporter mentioned the news that the fifth season of "Emily in Paris" was going to Rome, Macron joked: "We will fight hard and ask them to stay in Paris!" He was also proud of his wife, Brigitte Macron, for a great cameo in the fourth season and said he was not as attractive as her.
Since "Emily in Paris" aired in 2020, Emily · Cooper has become the best ambassador of France – something Macron also acknowledges and is grateful for. Data from the France television station BFMTV shows that in 2007, only 39% of United States people had a favorable opinion of France; This number increases to 73% in 2023. Of the audience of Emily in Paris, 36% want to "live in France" and 26% want to "work in France". Reality did not disappoint them either. Of those who have been to Paris in the last 10 years, 89% believe that the Paris shown in the TV series is close to reality. Among the people Macron thanked was Taylor · Swift and her "Times Tour". France Television One (TF1) called the tour "the most in-demand concert in France history". "The concert in Paris was a great success – a unique phenomenon for different generations in France and for the Parisian economy." Macron said.
Speaking of Taylor · Swift, it has to be said that the "Macron dances with mold" video circulating widely on social media, the topic is here, Macron talks about concerns about artificial intelligence and the development of AI in France. "AI is going to revolutionize many fields, for better or for worse. We (France) need to train and retain talent, invest more public and private money, build more data centers, and develop a wide range of language models that match our preferences – and here Mistral AI is extremely important. To boost productivity and increase the ability to create value, wealth and innovation, France needs AI to facilitate communication in key areas. "But AI is unstable for vulnerable people, it can be a harassing factor, it can mislead people, and thus disrupt democracy." So how is it regulated? "Whatever the content, the communicator must be held accountable for it." In May this year, the Council of the European Union passed the Artificial Intelligence Act, which aims to introduce a common regulatory and legal framework for AI, defending the rights of European writers and creators. However, Macron believes that the "Artificial Intelligence Act" does not solve the deeper level, such as music streaming services that do not allow every singer to be paid fairly. "There are musicians with regular followers who can't compare to artists who have a sudden spike in downloads. While this is an economic option, the model of streaming is quite distorted. ”
Macron's attitude towards France culture
In the interview, Macron also talked about the role that France culture can play in the changing media landscape and why France-made films and art are so important for the future. "What do we need? On the one hand, there are popular, mass-oriented films; On the other hand, there is the need for a film that does not have a large audience but is full of creativity. This requires us to provide adequate funding for the latter. There is not only one audience, and the model should not be uniform. It's important to create diversity. ”
In fact, Macron has always had his own unique view of France culture. During the 2017 presidential campaign in France, he said in many public speeches that there is no culture of some people and the culture of others in France, there is no France culture (La culture fançaise), only one culture that exists on the territory of France (La culture en France). No writer, musician, or artist should be excluded from this culture on the grounds that they are "from somewhere else." "What makes France literature, painting, music and dance? Our country has the capacity to train talent, and talent from abroad also contributes to France culture. I love our language and culture more than anything else. France culture has always been open, it has always had the ability to bring others together and bring in talent. ”
In an interview with Causeur magazine in 2017, Macron said: "France has never been, and never will be, a multicultural country. This clip has been repeatedly satirized by the media and critics. In 2020, Samuel Paty, a France middle school ·teacher, was killed after showing a Charlie Hebdo cartoon of the Islamic prophet Muhammad in his class. Macron condemned the act and explained to the New York Times: "The model in France is universalism, not pluralism. "In our society, I don't care if a person is black, yellow, or white, or if he's a Catholic or a Muslim. A person is first and foremost a citizen. However, Macron's multi-pluralistic views have also drawn him from criticism. France media Frontières said, "Does Macron privately appreciate France culture? We'll never know. But he loves aphorisms, and the aphorism he always embodies is 'Listen to what I say, don't look at what I do.'" Apparently for the president, the question of France culture is essentially ambiguous. ”
News and picture sources: Variety, Frontières, some pictures from the Internet
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