''Aujourd'hui'' (, ''Today'') was a

daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sports a ...

which styled itself as "independent" and which was created in August 1940 by

Henri Jeanson Henri Jules Louis Jeanson (6 March 1900 in Paris – 6 November 1970 in Équemauville) was a French writer and journalist. He was a "satrap" in the "College of 'Pataphysics". As a journalist before World War II Jeanson was born on 6 March ...

, to replace ''

le Canard enchaîné (; English: "The Chained Duck" or "The Chained Paper", as is French slang meaning "newspaper") is a satirical weekly newspaper in France. Its headquarters is in Paris. Founded in 1915 during World War I, it features investigative journalism a ...

'' under agreement with the Germans. The first issue appeared on 10 September 1940. In November 1940, the German authorities pressured the director into taking a public position against the

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""Th ...

s and in favour of politics of collaboration with the

Vichy regime Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its terr ...

. Jeanson resigned, and was succeeded by the

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

Georges Suarez Georges Suarez (1890–1944) was a French writer, essayist and journalist. Initially a pacifist, then a collaborator (he had been editor of ''Aujourd'hui'', a French newspaper controlled by the Third Reich after the resignation of the writer H ...

. ''Aujourd'hui'' was far from innocent in its pursuit of those responsible for the 1940 defeat of France, resorting to the myth of the "clean sweep of the broom" in its notorious

Anglophobia Anti-English sentiment or Anglophobia (from Latin ''Anglus'' "English" and Greek φόβος, ''phobos'', "fear") means opposition to, dislike of, fear of, hatred of, or the oppression and persecution of England and/or English people.''Oxford ...

. It began to reflect the narrative of Marshal

Philippe Pétain Henri Philippe Benoni Omer Pétain (24 April 1856 – 23 July 1951), commonly known as Philippe Pétain (, ) or Marshal Pétain (french: Maréchal Pétain), was a French general who attained the position of Marshal of France at the end of World ...

and of German

propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...

. The paper was in favour of the Riom trials which were set up to punish the members of the pre-war government who were allegedly responsible for France's defeat in 1940.

was shot in 1944.

Main contributors

Robert Desnos Robert Desnos (; 4 July 1900 – 8 June 1945) was a French poet who played a key role in the Surrealist movement of his day. Biography Robert Desnos was born in Paris on 4 July 1900, the son of a licensed dealer in game and poultry at the '' H ...

, Félicien Challaye,

Achille Dauphin-Meunier Achille Dauphin-Meunier (1906–1984) was a French economist. He wrote on US-Laotian relations. He was a member of the Club de l'horloge The Carrefour de l'Horloge (literally ''The Clock Crossroad''), formerly Club de l'Horloge (1974–2015), ...

Jean Anouilh Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh (; 23 June 1910 – 3 October 1987) was a French dramatist whose career spanned five decades. Though his work ranged from high drama to absurdist farce, Anouilh is best known for his 1944 play ''Antigone'', an ad ...

Marcel Aymé Marcel Aymé (29 March 1902 – 14 October 1967) was a French novelist and playwright, who also wrote screenplays and works for children. Biography Marcel André Aymé was born in Joigny, in the Burgundy region of France, the youngest of si ...

Léon-Paul Fargue Léon-Paul Fargue (, 4 March 187624 November 1947) was a French poet and essayist. He was born in Paris, France, on rue Coquilliére. As a poet he was noted for his poetry of atmosphere and detail. His work spanned numerous literary movements. ...

André Juin André — sometimes transliterated as Andre — is the French and Portuguese form of the name Andrew, and is now also used in the English-speaking world. It used in France, Quebec, Canada and other French-speaking countries. It is a variation o ...

Antisemitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

Collaboration Collaboration (from Latin ''com-'' "with" + ''laborare'' "to labor", "to work") is the process of two or more people, entities or organizations working together to complete a task or achieve a goal. Collaboration is similar to cooperation. Most ...

Je suis partout ''Je suis partout'' (, lit. ''I am everywhere'') was a French newspaper founded by , first published on 29 November 1930. It was placed under the direction of Pierre Gaxotte until 1939. Journalists of the paper included Lucien Rebatet, , the illus ...

Otto Abetz Heinrich Otto Abetz (26 March 1903 – 5 May 1958) was the German ambassador to Vichy France during the Second World War and a convicted war criminal. In July 1949 he was sentenced to twenty years' hard labour by a Paris military tribunal, he was ...

Defunct newspapers published in France Home front during World War II Newspapers of the Vichy regime Daily newspapers published in France {{france-newspaper-stub

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