Franz-Olivier Giesbert (born January 18, 1949, in

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington (Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...

) is an American-born French

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 journalis ...

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

, and television presenter. Giesbert worked for ''

Le Figaro ''Le Figaro'' () is a French daily morning newspaper founded in 1826. It is headquartered on Boulevard Haussmann in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. The oldest national newspaper in France, ''Le Figaro'' is one of three French newspapers of r ...

'' from 1988 to 2000 and for '' Le Point'' starting in 2000. In 2013, he wrote the scenario of a documentary about his relationship with the former president, '' Nicolas Sarkozy, secrets d’une présidence''. ("Nicholas Sarkozy, secrets of a presidency"). Giesbert hosts the

cable television Cable television is a system of delivering television programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This contrasts with bro ...

, weekly, literary show ''Le Gai Savoir'' on

Paris Première Paris Première is a French public TV channel, available on cable, satellite and the digital terrestrial service, Télévision Numérique Terrestre. It was launched on 15 December 1986 and is now wholly owned by the Groupe M6. Programming ...

. In 1999, the show won the Richelieu price of the Association for the Defense of French Language. Since October 2011, he hosts ''Les Grandes Questions'' on

France 5 France 5 () is a French free-to-air public television channel, part of the France Télévisions group. Principally featuring educational programming, the channel's motto is ''la chaîne de la connaissance et du savoir'' (the knowledge network). ...

. And starting in 2012, he also hosts on

France 3 France 3 () is a French free-to-air public television channel and part of the France Télévisions group, which also includes France 2, France 4, France 5 and France Info. It is made up of a network of regional television services provi ...

the monthly show ''Le Monde d'après'' ("The world after").

Controversies

In 2007, he wrote the biography of

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...

's mobster Jacky le Mat, ''l'Immortel'', adapted by Richard Berry. In 2018, he is attacked by

Asia Argento Asia Argento (; born Aria Maria Vittoria Rossa Argento; 20 September 1975) is an Italian actress and filmmaker. The daughter of filmmaker Dario Argento, she has had roles in several of her father's features and achieved mainstream success with ...

and

Marlène Schiappa Marlène Schiappa (, ; born 18 November 1982) is a French writer and politician who served as Minister Delegate in charge of Citizenship, attached to the Minister of the Interior, in the government of Prime Minister Jean Castex (2020–2022) an ...

, for explaining actresses presented as crucified and raped by

Harvey Weinstein Harvey Weinstein (; born March 19, 1952) is an American former film producer and convicted sex offender. He and his brother, Bob Weinstein, co-founded the entertainment company Miramax, which produced several successful independent films includ ...

had to know what happened than, analyzed as

Gaslighting Gaslighting is a colloquialism, loosely defined as manipulating someone so as to make them question their own reality. The term derives from the title of the 1944 American film '' Gaslight'', which was based on the 1938 British theatre play '' G ...

Slut shaming Slut-shaming is the practice of criticizing people, especially women and girls, who are perceived to violate expectations of behavior and appearance regarding issues related to sexuality. The term is used to reclaim the word ''slut'' and empower ...

and

Victim blaming Victim blaming occurs when the victim of a crime or any wrongful act is held entirely or partially at fault for the harm that befell them. There is historical and current prejudice against the victims of domestic violence and sex crimes, such as ...

. In 2021, the pedophile writer Gabriel Matzneff, describes him as an unwavering support. He was criticized by

Laure Adler Laure Adler ( née Laure Clauzet; born 11 March 1950, in Caen) is a French journalist, writer, publisher and radio/TV producer. Works Biographies * 1986: ''L'Amour à l'arsenic : histoire de Marie Lafarge'', Denoël. * 1998: ''Marguerite ...

for regretting that people didn't speak french, at the train station of Marseille.

Selected novels

*''L'Affreux'' ("The ugly"), Grasset, 1992 (

Grand prix du roman de l'Académie française Le Grand Prix du Roman is a French literary award, created in 1914, and given each year by the Académie française. Along with the Prix Goncourt The Prix Goncourt (french: Le prix Goncourt, , ''The Goncourt Prize'') is a prize in French litera ...

, 1992) *''La Souille'' ("The soil"), Grasset, 1995 (

Prix Interallié The prix Interallié (Interallié Prize), also known simply as ''l'Interallié'', is an annual French literary award, awarded for a novel written by a journalist. History The prize was started on 3 December 1930 by about thirty or so journa ...

, 1995) *''Un très grand amour'' ("A great love"), Gallimard, 2010 (Prix Alain Duménil, 2010) *''La cuisinière d'Himmler'' (

Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was of the (Protection Squadron; SS), and a leading member of the Nazi Party of Germany. Himmler was one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany and a main architect of th ...

's cook"), Gallimard, 2013 (

Globe de Cristal Awards The Awards (English: Crystal Globe Awards) is a set of awards bestowed by members of the French Press Association recognizing excellence in home art and culture. The annual formal ceremony and dinner at which the awards are presented happens ea ...

winner, 2014)

References

1949 births Living people 20th-century French journalists 21st-century French journalists French columnists French crime fiction writers French television presenters French people of American descent Writers from Wilmington, Delaware Prix Interallié winners Grand Prix du roman de l'Académie française winners French male novelists 20th-century French male writers French male non-fiction writers Le Figaro people {{France-journalist-stub