Dialogue in and between Different Cultures - International ...

78 Natàlia Izard & Clara-Ubaldina Lorda
Regarding those involved, there is a clearly established distinction between the
demonstrators as a whole and the rioters, whose actions are explained in detail:
the attacks on a shop, a news stand, a car, the windows of several cafés, a
bookstore, a police car, etc. We can hear the account of a police officer who
deplores these events but who also acknowledges that the demonstration has been
otherwise calm. The majority of the witnesses give point-blank opinions against
the CPE, but we can also see students who deplore the violence and others who
consider that the CPE can be positive.
A large part of this news report has the characteristic of developing with the
facts, as happens with sport events. As the show develops, the events take more
and more place, to the point where DP and the others finally explain the facts
almost live. At the same time, documentaries of geographical and historic
contextualization are introduced.
Regarding the object of the agitations, the CPE, we can see the lack of
explanations or commentaries, obviously because it is well known by the
audience, since the demonstrations and protests had started at the beginning of
February.
We can see and hear three politicians: Villepin, as Prime Minister and
promoter of the CPE, Sarkozy as responsible for the control of the public order,
and Hollande, leader of the opposition.
At the end, a short documentary situates this movement in a line of protest
actions against the reforms in the secondary and superior education and in the
work laws. The final commentary is a diagnosis, identifying a major cause of the
difficulty of reforms in France: too many changes of government.
5. A festivity on La 2, a Spanish national channel
On March the 16 th , the news of the protests in France have a very global summary
(han salido a la calle de varias ciudades cientos de miles de universitarios
(“hundreds of thousands of university students are on the streets in many cities”)
in La 2. The part dedicated to the riots is very much minimized no todos han
acabado de forma pacífica (“not all of them have finished in peacefully”).
The explanation given on the CPE is incomplete, since the journalists highlight
the possibility of firing a worker, without mentioning that this is limited to
the first two years. In this first presentation, there are also some sociological
comments on the social unrest of the French youth. The demonstration is
interpreted as a general refusal of ‘hire and fire’ policies. We hear about the broad
support given to students, and the tone is rather one of sympathy towards the
demonstrators.
The development of the story starts with an allusion to May 1968. The
demonstration is narrated; the figures do not coincide with the numbers given on
the French television. Besides the demonstrators, we hear about Villepin and
Chirac. Villepin is called the ‘author’ and we hear that he has made up his mind to