“
An independent media, without opinions or whipping of dispatches
”.
This is the bet made by Factual, the new digital investigative media launched this Wednesday by Stéphane Simon, producer and creator of several online information media, and Sami Biasoni, essayist, financier, and co-founder of the video media, Neo .
Embodied by two personalities well known to the general public, Christine Kelly, presenter on Cnews, and Dominique Rizet, police-justice consultant for BFMTV, the Factual site will offer surveys on social, cultural, economic and international subjects.
The medium, without advertisements, is betting on digital subscriptions to guarantee its independence.
“
The objective is to propose an article or a video which will bring new, clear and dispassionate information, in which we will present the facts as they are
”, explains to
Figaro
Romain Renner, the editorial director.
Factual
is the second digital media in the space of a few months to enter the field of investigation.
At the end of October 2022, the site of the economic media l'Informé, financed by the founder of Free Xavier Niel, was born.
"
We do not consider ourselves in competition with the media offer that already exists, but we come to bring something else
," he continues.
A target of 25,000 subscribers
For its launch, the digital media received the support of several private investors “
who will not participate in editorial decisions
”, specifies the general manager, Hugues de Foucauld.
Questioned by
Le Figaro
, he did not wish to specify their identities or the amount of the investment.
The pre-subscription campaign began this Wednesday with formulas that offer different frequencies to Internet users tempted by the project.
"
Our formula over one year is 95 euros, or eight euros per month
", explains the general manager.
The team has set an intake of
25,000
subscribers for the first year
.
"
We are aiming for financial equilibrium in 24 months
", continues Hugues de Foucauld.
To attract readers,
Factue
l publishes a first survey, in several parts, on the dangers posed by faulty RATP maintenance for its staff and users.
It contains various interviews with company agents and excerpts from a confidential study to which only the online media would have had access.
“We seek to identify information that is worth reading through and available on several papers or videos, with interviews or additional insights.
»
Romain Renner, editorial director of digital media Factual
For the time being, the Factual team is made up of around forty journalists, freelancers and experts, in order to explore different formats.
“
For example, we won't hesitate to make video to carry out interviews or deliver a raw document to our subscribers
,” says Romain Renner.
To reach the widest possible audience,
Factual
is also deployed on social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Pledge of political neutrality
Enthusiastic about the idea of being the godmother of the project, Christine Kelly believes that
Factual
can provide an answer to the reproaches regularly formulated against the continuous news channels.
“
Where viewers can be mistaken is that these channels are not intended to offer in-depth investigations on the ground
,” she begins.
Before continuing: “
On the other hand, it is essential to have, opposite, a consequent offer of objective investigative media, to answer their questions
”.
If the journalist does not plan to write papers for the site, she will advise journalists and regularly speak at editorial conferences at the offices of Factual, based in Levallois-Perret.
"
The editorial lines of the media for which Christine Kelly and Dominique Rizet work will have no influence on our work
", warns Hugues de Foucauld, before recalling the promise of neutrality made by the online media.