Questioning public interest journalism in New Caledonia

Abstract

Commentary: François Hollande’s five-year term of office as President of France overlaps a critical time for the future of New Caledonia, where a referendum is set to take place between 2014 and 2019 to decide whether or not the archipelago will remain within the French Republic or become independent. New Caledonia has a unique status in the polity of France. It is a special collectivity, more than a colonial territory, but less than a fully independent state within a Francophone commonwealth. It is the author’s contention, however, that within the public sphere of this unique political entity, it is the media in New Caledonia, rather than the government of metropolitan France that will play the decisive role in influencing the future of New Caledonia. Therefore, this commentary sets out to interrogate the role local media could play in the future of the archipelago and the implications for the New Caledonian public.