Journalist Christophe Barbier, 53, is leaving the weekly
L'Express
where he spent nearly 25 years, notably as editorial director and then as columnist, to "
devote himself to new editorial, media and cultural projects
" , the magazine announces.
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“
Christophe Barbier is leaving L'Express, where he joined on April 22, 1996 as editor-in-chief of the political service.
During these twenty-four years, the journalist with the famous red scarf headed the editorial staff from 2006 to 2016, before being a member of the general management of Groupe Express-Roularta from 2011 to 2015, ensuring the digital transformation and diversification of the newspaper,
”the magazine said in this week's issue, which appeared on Wednesday.
“
As insomniac as he is editorial prolific, he has covered most of the big news for this quarter century.
Since 2016, he was a columnist and editorial advisor
”, continues the text specifying that the management“
pays tribute
”to him.
Christophe Barbier is also an editorial writer for BFMTV and for the weekly Actualité Juive, as well as theatrical critic on Radio J. Passed by Le Point, Europe 1, LCI and iTélé, this theater lover has directed and performed in several plays.
He has also made a few appearances in television dramas and published some twenty books.
He left the management of the magazine in 2016 when the weekly sales were in free fall.
L'Express
was bought in 2015 by Altice, Patrick Drahi's group, then in the summer of 2019, by Alain Weill, CEO of Altice France (parent company of SFR and many media), who had acquired as personal the majority of the shares of this weekly founded in 1953. Alain Weill had launched at the beginning of 2020 yet another new formula of the magazine, which was seen in
The
French-speaking
Economist
, with more content but fewer photos, reduced pagination, while overhauling the magazine. digital offer by focusing in particular on podcasts.
Like all the press, L'Express was affected by the health crisis: its 2019/2020 circulation fell by more than 14% to 193,967 copies per week, according to figures from the ACPM.
