Do the British still blame French (journalists) for Diana’s death? This question imposed itself on me while reading yet another e-mail refusing my request for accreditation for the coronation ceremony of Charles III.
In total, I received the same generic email half a dozen times. It read, in English as polite as it was haughty (like the bearskinthose hairy caps of the country guard), that one had to be accredited to benefit from a position posted in the ” ceremonial footprint (literally “ceremonial imprint” or “to have one foot in it”). But that, the capacity within this sacred concrete being limited, only a few happy few (of which I am not a part, you will understand) would be tolerated.
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So as not to miss a breach, I sent the email to a British correspondent friend in Paris. ” It’s very British bullshit ah ah! Looks like they’re trying to make it complicated. ” In effect.
The only way to hope to be there is to go through one of the “umbrella media” (the BBC, for example). These ‘umbrella’ media entities house some UK and international journalists. I wrote to all the umbrellas, who explained to me that you had to be a member of their structure. Either. So I expressed, warmly, the wish to become a partner with one of them. What followed was a lovely buttered scone flavored rake. ” To become a member, you must be a British correspondent for your newspaper, and not simply go through it (“fly in” in VO) for a few events… Tempted to take my interlocutor at her word – I don’t fly between Paris and London – I insisted. Answer : ” Any foreign media simply passing by for the occasion will not be able to obtain accreditation. »
The next paragraph was meant to be fun. He said: you can still come, like everyone else. Then gave a short course in field journalism: “ You can circulate in the crowd, feel the atmosphere, take a few vox pops and maybe take a few photos on your phone… Trying everything, I called the government. I received the same generic response with the added bonus of a double warning: ” We ask that you be mindful/not to disturb the audience, please. ” Of the ” stewards will even be responsible for ensuring the respectful behavior of the media, we warn. Not like in 1997 under the Alma bridge, then.
