Roland Faure, former chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of Radio France, died on Saturday at the age of 96, his family announced to Franceinfo. “He had directed Radio France from 1986 to 1989. During this period, he created the continuous information radio, franceinfo, alongside Jérôme Bellay in 1987”, recall our colleagues.
On her Twitter account, Sibyle Veil, the current boss of Radio France, posted a message today to pay tribute to her. “Give me 20 minutes and I’ll give you the world”: brilliant intuition behind the invention of franceinfo in 1987″, she begins. And to add: “It was that of Roland Faure, CEO of Radio France from 1986 to 1989, who died this Saturday. I pay tribute to this great journalist and radio man”.
Biography (source: Radio France)
Roland Faure was born on October 10, 1926 in Montélimar (Drôme). A graduate of the Faculty of Law of Aix-en-Provence, he began his career in 1947 as a journalist at Méridional-La France in Marseille. He was a delegate of the Latin Press Association of Europe and America in 1951 and was the founder and editor-in-chief of the Journal français du Brésil in Rio de Janeiro between 1952 and 1953. He joined L’Aurore in 1954 and was successively diplomatic editor (1954), head of the diplomatic service (1959), editor-in-chief (1962) then director-editor-in-chief of the daily (1968-1978).
After having been attached to the Cabinet of the Minister of Public Works (1957-1958), he was notably director of the weekly newspaper Tous les nouvelles de Versailles (1954-1986), secretary-general of the Association of the Latin press of Europe and America since 1954, member of the board of Antenne 2 (1975-1979), director of information at Radio France (1979-1981), founder and director of CVS Canal Versailles Stéréo (1982-1986), chairman and managing director of Radio France (1986-1989), chairman of the International Radio and Television Union (URTI) (1987-1997), chairman of the Community of French-language radio stations (CRPLF) (1987-1989), administrator of Agence France-Presse (1987-1989).
When the Conseil Supérieur de l’Audiovisuel was created in January 1989, Roland Faure was appointed by the President of the Senate to sit on the CSA, of which he remained a member until January 1997. During his period as President of Radio France, he created the continuous news radio station, France Info, alongside Jérôme Bellay in 1987.
He is also honorary president of the Mediterranean Center for Audiovisual Communication (CMCA) since 1996 and of the Permanent Conference of Mediterranean Audiovisuals (COPEAM), Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Marguerite Long-Jacques Thibaud Foundation and of the international piano and violin competition (1991-2006), president of the Club Dab for digital radio (1991-2002), founding president of the Symposium du Sportel de Monaco (1991), mediator at the Paris Court of Appeal for the award of football television rights (2003).
A well-known journalist, Roland Faure received the Prize for the best young journalist in France in 1950 as well as the International Prize for great reporting in 1962. He is Commander of the Legion of Honor, Officer of the National Order of Merit and Commander of Arts and letters.
