The antenna of France Inter was hacked on Sunday April 10, when the first results of the first round of the presidential election were announced. Listening interference and a political message were broadcast on its Paris-Est FM network, on the frequency 87.8MHz.
Around 8 p.m., when the first percentages and analyzes of the first round are traditionally broadcast, a “pirate transmitter blew the station’s frequency”, a prohibited technique, explains the management of France Inter. A speech of a few minutes against “politicians, technocrats or even journalists” has been diffused “endlessly” for almost two hours.
Friends listeners from eastern Paris, some of you have been disturbed by listening to our election evening @France Inter #Election2022
We are absolutely sorry about this and are doing everything to understand what happened and prevent it from happening again. pic.twitter.com/hjzOkdTOdg—Laurence Bloch (@LaurenceBloch) April 10, 2022
The radio said that “only the network covering the 20th arrondissement of Paris was concerned”. A localized hack which she realized thanks to a tweet from a listener. No complaints have been forwarded to management. “We We are absolutely sorry and we are doing everything to understand what happened and prevent it from happening again”Laurence Bloch, director of France Inter, said on Twitter on Sunday evening.
Antoine Chao, reporter for the channel, tells, on the same social network, his surprise at listening to the pirate message broadcast live. He managed to record a good part of it: “The piracy must have started around 8 p.m., I only turned on my FM radio around 8:10 p.m. and then started recording in my kitchen. I couldn’t believe it… The fifteen-minute pirate program was running in loop, France Inter resumed around 10:20 p.m. “.
Recording of the incredible hacking of the 87.8 FM frequency of France Inter in the East of Paris last night 10 04 2022https://t.co/t7cELpDrIQ
— Antoine Chao (@antoinechao) April 11, 2022
Posted on the Soundcloud sound platform, Antoine Chao’s recording features a metallic voice, an agonizing tone and music, interspersed with sound clips reminiscent of reportage archives.
At the same time, in Lyon, the program of an “anti-France radio” was broadcast on the 100 MHz frequency of the FM band.
Pirate broadcast in Lyon on 100 fm. On the web: https://t.co/2l7CsZnlBt
Anti-France did not go to vote. Anti-France spits in the electoral soup. Anti-France pirates the airwaves. pic.twitter.com/88Wy5PFJkk— radio-anti-france (@radioantifranc1) April 10, 2022
Two pirate radios for tonight:
➡️At the moment in Paris, the election night is not going as planned on France Inter (87.8FM) and on 107.9FM.
➡️L’antifrance broadcasts on 100fm in Lyon and everywhere on https://t.co/OGJMWGMP4K / twitter: @radioantifranc1 pic.twitter.com/UkKTrFLpdb
– Nantes Revolted (@Nantes_Revoltee) April 10, 2022