# Petition for the closure of CNews: nearly 500,000 signatures > A petition launched in June on the National Assembly website calling for the banning of CNews surpassed 130,000 signatures on October 29. On October 30, it crossed the 200,000 signature mark, as two Green Party MPs called for the withdrawal of media accreditation from Bolloré Group outlets. On October 31, protesters denounced CNews' coverage of the high school and social movement, holding numerous signs hostile to the channel. On November 1, LFI MP Thomas Portes made the closure of CNews a priority, while Sarah Knafo denounced an attempt at gagging. That same day, the petition, whose support had doubled over the weekend, approached 500,000 signatures. **In brief**: Ongoing story bringing together 8 events nationwide, followed from 29 October 2026 to 2 November 2026. 45 articles from 29 sources (society, politics); last updated on 2 November 2026 at 20:08. - Status: ongoing - Category: Society, Politics - Place: Nationwide - First detected: 29 October 2026 at 18:55 - Updated: 2 November 2026 at 20:08 - Web page: https://acturadar.com/en/stories/196-petition-for-the-closure-of-cnews-nearly-500-000-signatures ## Coverage angles The left and centre mainly cover the crossing of the 500,000 signature threshold and its parliamentary follow-up, while the right highlights the political actors demanding the channel's closure and accusations of gagging. **Common ground** - The petition, submitted in June on the National Assembly website, calls for the removal of CNews from French audiovisual media. - It surpassed 500,000 signatures on November 2. - This threshold opens the possibility of a committee examination and a debate at the National Assembly, without guaranteeing a final outcome. **Differences** - The left describes CNews as a far-right media outlet or a "propaganda machine," an angle absent from right-wing articles. - The right highlights the accusation of "gagging" made by Sarah Knafo, which is absent from left-wing and centre articles. - The left links the growth in signatures to the racist attack in Trappes, a link not picked up by the right. ## Background _Context and reference points, separate from the story’s news; every item links to its source._ **Key terms** - **Online petition on the National Assembly website**: The National Assembly's petition platform is a web-based petition site allowing adult citizens, either French nationals or regularly residing in France, to exercise direct and participatory democracy by submitting and signing petitions addressed to the National Assembly. Once 500,000 signatures are collected, originating from at least 30 departments or overseas territories, the Conference of Presidents may decide whether or not to organise a public session debate dedicated to this ([Wikipédia](https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plateforme_des_p%C3%A9titions_de_l%27Assembl%C3%A9e_nationale)) - **Parliamentary accreditation**: Parliamentary accreditation is an authorisation granted to a journalist to access parliamentary precincts and carry out their work there. In Spain, a 2025 parliamentary initiative aims to reform the Rules of Procedure of the Congress of Deputies to sanction behaviours that "seriously harm the activities of the chamber or the work of other parliamentarians", with sanctions ranging up to permanent revocation of accreditation. ([Wikipédia](https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bertrand_Ndongo)) - **Freedom of the press**: Freedom of the press is one of the fundamental principles of democratic systems, based on freedom of opinion and freedom of expression. Article 11 of the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen of 1789 states that "every Citizen may therefore speak, write, and print freely, except to answer for the abuse of this liberty in cases determined by Law". ([Wikipédia](https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libert%C3%A9_de_la_presse_en_France)) - **Higher Audiovisual Council**: The Higher Audiovisual Council (CSA) was an independent French public authority responsible for ensuring freedom of communication and compliance with legal and regulatory obligations in the audiovisual sector. It merged on January 1, 2022, with the High Authority for Audiovisual Works and the Protection of Rights on the Internet (Hadopi) to form the Audiovisual and Digital Communication Regulatory Authority (Arcom). ([Wikipédia](https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autorit%C3%A9_de_r%C3%A9gulation_de_la_communication_audiovisuelle_et_num%C3%A9rique)) **What happens next?** _What usually happens in this kind of situation, without prejudging the outcome._ 1. Generally, a petition exceeding 500,000 signatures is transmitted to the Conference of Presidents, which may decide whether or not to organise a public session debate, upon proposal from the president of the competent committee or a group president. ([Wikipédia](https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plateforme_des_p%C3%A9titions_de_l%27Assembl%C3%A9e_nationale)) 2. Once assigned to a committee, a reporting MP is designated; they propose either to examine the petition (possibly via a parliamentary report) or to dismiss it without further action. ([Wikipédia](https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plateforme_des_p%C3%A9titions_de_l%27Assembl%C3%A9e_nationale)) 3. Even in the event of a plenary debate, the subject of the petition is purely consultative and does not oblige any vote, nor repeal or suspend a law. ([Wikipédia](https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plateforme_des_p%C3%A9titions_de_l%27Assembl%C3%A9e_nationale)) ## Timeline (8 events) ### 29 October 2026 — [Petition to close CNews approaches 130,000 signatures](https://acturadar.com/en/events/4258-petition-to-close-cnews-approaches-130-000-signatures.md) A petition launched in June on the National Assembly website calling for CNews to be banned has passed 130,000 signatories; beyond 500,000, it could be debated in the chamber. 4 sources, 4 articles · Nationwide ### 30 October 2026 — [La pétition pour la fermeture de CNews dépasse 200 000 signatures](https://acturadar.com/en/events/5466-la-petition-pour-la-fermeture-de-cnews-depasse-200-000-signatures.md) La pétition demandant la suppression de CNews sur le site de l'Assemblée nationale a dépassé les 200 000 signatures, alors que deux députés écologistes réclament le retrait des accréditations des médias du groupe Bolloré. 6 sources, 6 articles · Nationwide ### 31 October 2026 — [Manifestation : de nombreuses pancartes anti-CNews](https://acturadar.com/en/events/5861-manifestation-de-nombreuses-pancartes-anti-cnews.md) Lors des mobilisations, des manifestants dénoncent le traitement médiatique du mouvement lycéen et social par CNews, avec de nombreuses pancartes hostiles à la chaîne. 1 sources, 1 articles · Nationwide ### 1 November 2026 — [Thomas Portes veut faire de la fermeture de CNews une « priorité »](https://acturadar.com/en/events/6366-thomas-portes-veut-faire-de-la-fermeture-de-cnews-une-priorite.md) Le député LFI Thomas Portes prône la fermeture de CNews, rejoignant d'autres personnalités de gauche. Sarah Knafo dénonce une volonté de bâillonnement. 1 sources, 1 articles · Nationwide ### 1 November 2026 — [La pétition pour la fermeture de CNews approche des 500 000 signatures](https://acturadar.com/en/events/6700-la-petition-pour-la-fermeture-de-cnews-approche-des-500-000-signatures.md) Le texte déposé en juin sur le site de l'Assemblée nationale a vu ses soutiens doubler pendant le week-end, se rapprochant des 500 000 signatures. 26 sources, 30 articles · Nationwide ### 2 November 2026 — [Le député Jérémie Patrier-Leitus défend CNews face aux appels à sa fermeture](https://acturadar.com/en/events/7376-le-depute-jeremie-patrier-leitus-defend-cnews-face-aux-appels-a-sa-fermeture.md) Le député Horizons dénonce les appels d'une partie de la gauche à fermer CNews et alerte sur les attaques contre les médias. 1 sources, 1 articles · Nationwide ### 2 November 2026 — [Une pétition de soutien à CNews lancée face à celle réclamant sa fermeture](https://acturadar.com/en/events/7366-une-petition-de-soutien-a-cnews-lancee-face-a-celle-reclamant-sa-fermeture.md) Alors qu'une pétition réclame la fermeture de CNews, une autre pétition appelle à défendre la liberté d'expression de la chaîne. 1 sources, 1 articles · Nationwide ### 2 November 2026 — [La pétition contre CNews ouvre la voie à un débat dans l'hémicycle](https://acturadar.com/en/events/7447-la-petition-contre-cnews-ouvre-la-voie-a-un-debat-dans-l-hemicycle.md) La pétition demandant l'interdiction de CNews a dépassé 500 000 signatures, ouvrant la voie à un débat parlementaire. La députée Sophie Taillé-Polian s'exprime sur cette démarche. 1 sources, 1 articles · Nationwide --- Cite as: Acturadar, “Petition for the closure of CNews: nearly 500,000 signatures”, https://acturadar.com/en/stories/196-petition-for-the-closure-of-cnews-nearly-500-000-signatures Methodology: https://acturadar.com/en/methodology