Many worked alongside him, others simply listened to him during the many broadcasts that this hard worker led for five decades. Just last year, he interviewed François Bayrou or Anne Hidalgo on Europe 1... A rain of tributes falls today in memory of Jean-Pierre Elkabbach, who died Tuesday at the age of 86.
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The profession remembers an "exceptional journalist". The words, published on X (formerly Twitter), are by Philippe Labro, the former boss of RTL. "A respectful and affectionate tribute to this exceptional journalist whose countless interviews with officials from around the world, his dialogue with Mitterrand... He was one of a kind. He dominated his craft."
Pascal Praud's admiration
Joined by BFMTV, another great media figure, Michèle Cotta analyzes her personality and her contribution to the profession: "He was passionate about our profession, someone who has always sought excellence, in his questions for example. And then, it's still a whole clan of journalists and a whole era (...) He invented a certain type of political show, combative shows, where he asked the real questions."
"God is waiting for you with your cards for an interview"
Guillaume Durand
Pascal Praud confides to Le Figaro his admiration for the debater of "Cartes sur table", whom he has often met in the corridors of Europe 1: "Curiosity in all directions, XXL responsiveness, sense of information, quality of interviews etc. I loved him very much. He was amazing. At 80, he worked with staggering enthusiasm. I saw him at 8am. He had read everything, seen everything. And he reacted to everything! He proposed topics, angles, comments. What an energy! And what a pleasure this enthusiasm is!"
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Another faithful of Europe 1, Guillaume Durand ensures that we said "Jean-Pierre" as we said "Johnny". "The absolute passion, he continues on X. Violently fired in 1981, he returned to Europe 1. He directed everything, fired a lot, me among others." And this humorous trait: "God is waiting for you with your cards for an interview."
"End of an age. Emotion »
Bernard-Henri Lévy
Léa Salamé, who learned the art of interviewing at his side, took his best pen on Instagram: "He dreamed big. He passionately loved his job. He passionately loved France, even if he did not forget that he was born elsewhere. He lived history. He was unquiet and bubbling, and put intensity in everything. (...) He kept calling me sometimes to comment on my shows, yell at me or recommend a guest. He quotes Mauriac in the exergue of his autobiography "I was loved... and hated. More loved than hated? More hated than loved? Who knows?" We loved you Jean-Pierre. Thank you."
Many messages come from journalists at the historic station on Rue François Ier, which he joined for the first time in 1981, before chairing it between 2005 and 2008, then conducting interviews there. Caroline Roux remembers "so many shared moments". He had also been Wendy Bouchard's first boss. "It took character! He introduced us to Chirac and Giscard," recalls the current host of franceinfo.
Bernard-Henri Lévy, who had been interviewed several times by Elkabbach, shares his view: "Indomitable vitality. Insatiable curiosity. Wanted, at 20, to be Camus or nothing and became this prince of journalism dreaming of putting beauty, knowledge, knowledge, truth, within everyone's reach. End of an age. Emotion." Words also flow from personalities of the small screen: Michel Denisot, Arthur, Sylvie Tellier, Jean-Luc Reichmann, Nikos Aliagas...