I hesitated for a long time before writing this message, because I don't want to give importance to, or feed, this ridiculous summer saga that once again aims to discredit me. I have grown used to being treated in a way no other political figure has been treated before.
I decided to do it because it could happen to any of you. Think carefully about that. You could today, from one day to the next, find yourself accused of things you did not do, your image and reputation tarnished by a few lines on a website or social network.
In the case currently in the news, you should know that I spent 40 minutes explaining the situation to the journalist concerned, offering to provide all material evidence such as vehicle registration documents, insurance papers, bank records, etc. I have always been available to give explanations to the press. A few minutes later, I saw this article stating something completely false, wrongly accusing me and disregarding all the explanations and evidence provided!
On this basis, RTBF's journalists' society (SDJ) accuses me of pressuring journalists! They simply forget that I have never pressured journalists! I only called when they made factual errors and spread fake news. For a long time now, I haven't cared about their opinions or op-eds, which interest only themselves.
So this is once again an unsubstantiated accusation from the SDJ leaders, namely left-wing journalists, who confuse their role as journalists with that of activists. One only has to read some of their Twitter accounts to understand their political leanings.
If RTBF had done its job properly, there would have been no need for a call.
But too many journalists feel all-powerful, too often say whatever they like, and then invoke press freedom as a shield to avoid the obligations that come with that freedom.
They forget one thing: every freedom comes with responsibility. And that's what they refuse to talk about. They can damage reputations, destroy people, discredit public figures sometimes wrongly, without ever facing the slightest consequence. That's the difference between the press and everyone else. If I make the slightest mistake, I get punished many times over. They keep on telling other people's stories. Without taking any risk at all. You're never wrong when you're just commenting on what others do, sometimes well, sometimes badly.
They are also shocked that I called them directly. But it was journalist Charlotte Legrand herself who had called me directly a few minutes earlier! Afterwards, factual errors led to me being completely wrongly accused! Because another journalist had written the web article. That's another curious thing about RTBF: one journalist calls you for radio, another for the web, and a third team for TV. How can anyone still be surprised that this costs us 400 million euros a year in public money, more than four times more expensive than ALL the political parties in the country combined! And then they come and lecture you about exemplary conduct.
Finally, the idea that bodies like the Journalistic Ethics Council (CDJ) can fix things after the fact is illusory for at least two reasons:
1. Once information is published online, you can no longer retrieve it: it gets shared, there are screenshots, it spreads, etc. And even if bodies rule in your favour, that will get two lines two years later. Because the journalist is never wrong and hates publishing retractions or rights of reply. Moreover, months later, the damage is done. Your reputation is destroyed.
2. The CDJ is made up of RTBF staff, including the head of news! Who is being fooled here? Other members of that same CDJ have openly taken anti-MR political positions on social media! What credibility can be given to this quintessential old boys' club?
It is clear that by broadcasting entirely private conversations, RTBF has just broken the principle of trust that should exist between journalists and citizens so that people can simply work with peace of mind. All my political colleagues, instead of playing the outraged innocent while they themselves call newsrooms or, more deviously, go through intermediaries, should now know that they can be recorded without their knowledge and that this can be broadcast. This is a criminal and ethical offence.
Can these illegal practices be explained by the reforms we are currently carrying out, which some journalists have clearly decided to fight by stepping outside their role?
And finally, this display of hypocrisy is staggering: journalists are the first ones tugging at our sleeve for a good story. And some of them now want to play the virtuous ones who never have contact with politicians? That seems to bother them rather less during press trips paid for by the taxpayer…