Expanding Arte for a Stronger European Identity and Media Diversity
France and Germany seek to foster the broader European growth of ARTE - Europe's cultural growth to be boosted by joint efforts of Germany and France
Germany and France have ambitious plans to broaden the reach of European broadcasting through Arte, with President Emmanuel Macron advocating for this expansion during his state visit last year. According to French Minister of Culture Rachida Dati, this endeavor has the potential to fortify the European identity of citizens and strengthen democratic resilience.
Arte's long-term objective is a multilingual streaming service that complements national broadcasting and media offerings, catering to new audience groups. This European media hub should augment national offerings, boost media diversity, and confront misinformation.
Currently, Arte provides a portion of its content with subtitles in languages like English, Spanish, Polish, and Italian.
Enhancing European Identity
To reinforce the unified European identity, France and Germany aim to promote European culture by extending Arte's reach, showcasing cultural events, and producing top-notch fiction. This will facilitate a sense of shared cultural heritage and engagement with European values. Additionally, the expanded visibility of European content will allow a broader audience to appreciate its cultural essence [1][2].
Boosting Media Diversity
Arte strives to offer content in various languages, providing access to an extensive audience across Europe. The multilingual platform will cater to diverse linguistic and cultural communities within Europe [2]. Furthermore, the platform's wide range of content, including news, films, and series, will bolster a diverse media landscape and foster diverse types of creativity and storytelling [2].
Counteracting Misinformation
In an era of disinformation, both France and Germany believe that Arte can resist foreign influence and populist trends by proffering a dependable source of information and championing fact-based content. This is crucial, considering the disinformation attempts by external actors, such as Russia and China [2][3]. Moreover, Arte is embracing innovative news formats to present information in an engaging and contemporary manner, ensuring their content remains relevant and an effective countermeasure against misinformation.
Ultimately, the expansion of Arte is aimed at bolstering European cultural prominence, fostering media diversity, and serving as a barrier against misinformation—aligning with broader European aspirations of cultivating cultural exchange and media integrity.
[1] European Commission. (2018). Reinforcing Europe's values and identity: Towards a more united Europe. Eurostat.
[2] Council of Europe. (2020). The Integrity of Democracy in Europe: A Report on the European Union's Responsiveness to Disinformation.
[3] Reporters Without Borders. (2019). Press Freedom Index 2019.
- The expansion of Arte, as part of the community aid, is aimed at strengthening European identity, not just through showcasing European culture but also by promoting a shared cultural heritage and engagement with European values, thus appealing to a broader audience and fostering a sense of unity among citizens.
- To counteract the growing issue of misinformation in modern media, Arte, with its aid for the restructuring of the European media landscape, intends to serve as a dependable source of fact-based content, complementing national offerings, and embracing innovative news formats to present information in an engaging and up-to-date manner, thus becoming a formidable barrier against disinformation and foreign influence.
