What is a publishing house without its authors? A squandered reputation, an empty shell tossed about by the interests of its owner, a trampled editorial freedom, and a financial position weakened. Vincent Bolloré likely cares little about the answers to this question. The media mogul’s abrupt decision on Tuesday, April 14, to dismiss Olivier Nora, who had led Grasset for 26 years, proves as much. By undermining the independence of a publishing house long considered a pillar of French intellectual life, the billionaire sparked an unprecedented exodus, with more than 100 writers resigning in protest.
Grasset was an institution where discordant, sometimes antagonistic voices coexisted, always with the aim of fostering debate. By upsetting that fragile balance under the pretext of editorial disagreements with Nora, Bolloré has taken another step in his methodical influence strategy to advance a political and ideological agenda. This is no longer merely about profitability or industrial synergies. From CNews to Europe 1, from Le Journal du Dimanche to publishing, he has built a media ecosystem dominated by his Vivendi group, now a powerful amplifier for conservative, identitarian and openly reactionary ideas. The relentless promotion of the same themes – crime, decline, nostalgia for a moral order – has shaped both the public and political agenda.
Publishing, long seen as more resistant than the press, no longer escapes this logic. Since Bollore’s takeover of Hachette Livre three years ago, concerns have multiplied among authors, publishers and booksellers. After Fayard, another publishing house that has already undergone an editorial takeover promoting the far right, the forced departure of Nora now confirms their fears.
Cultural crusade
Disagreements over the release schedule of the next book by Boualem Sansal, a recent signing from Gallimard, and the refusal to accept in the catalog a book by Nicolas Diat, the publisher of Jordan Bardella with Fayard, were cited to justify the split. The reality is likely more prosaic and comes down to Bolloré’s desire to cut ties with anyone who might stand in the way of the cultural crusade he is intent on waging with his financial power.
Within a few years, the billionaire has built an unprecedented ideological enterprise. He was likely inspired by Rupert Murdoch’s work in the United States to support conservative thought. But the difference is that, within the Australian magnate’s group, a diversity of opinion remains – Fox News is aligned with Trumpism, yet The Wall Street Journal can still be critical. This is not the case in France. All Bolloré-owned media are committed in one direction, leaving no room for dissent.
The “Bollorization” of the media and intellectual landscape is not just a slogan coined by a cultural elite; it is a reality further illustrated by the takeover of Grasset. “We refuse to be hostages in an ideological war aimed at imposing authoritarianism across culture and the media,” wrote the departing Grasset authors. With a year to go before the presidential election, this courageous stand serves as a timely warning.
