Hachette Group’s owner, conservative billionaire Vincent Bolloré, promised on Sunday to find new writers to replace the 170 people who have left the prestigious subsidiary Grasset in protest of alleged political interference.
The protest was triggered by the departure of Grasset’s chief executive, Oliver Nora, for which the authors blame Bolloré, who is known for his extreme conservative views and has shifted his outlet even further to the right.
What did Bolloré say?
In a comment published by Journal du Dimanche Bolloré expressed surprise at the “uproar” at Grasset, the newspaper he also owns, while vowing to continue it with new writers.
Bolloré said, “Grasset will continue, and those leaving will allow new writers to be published, promoted, recognized and appreciated.”
He blamed the protests on “a small caste which considers itself above everything and everybody, and which associates itself and supports itself”.
Bolloré said, “As far as the attacks related to my ‘ideology’ are concerned, I repeat once again: I am a Christian Democrat, and the management of Hachette will continue to publish all writers who want to be published.”
Bolloré said Noura, who was Grasset’s CEO for 26 years, left after a dispute over the publication date of a book by French-Algerian writer Boulam Sansal, who was released from an Algerian prison last year.
He also criticized Nora’s record at Grasset and said its turnover had fallen 25% in 2025, with the CEO’s pay rising from €830.00 to €1 million ($977,000 to $1.17 million).
His takeover of Hachette in 2023 was welcomed by many conservatives in France, who saw it as a redress of the long-standing leftist bias in the French media.
What did the Grasset writers say?
In an open letter this week, the leaving authors – including philosopher Bernard Henri-Lévy and award-winning writers Virginie Despentes and Sorge Chalandon – condemned the publisher’s “unacceptable attack on editorial independence”.
He said he “refused to be held hostage in an ideological war that seeks to impose totalitarianism everywhere in culture and media.”
“We don’t want our ideas, our work, to become their property,” the authors said.
President Emmanuel Macron has responded to the case by emphasizing the importance of diversity of opinion in the publishing world.
Speaking to journalists at the Paris Book Festival, Macron said, “I think it is very important to express and maintain (editorial) diversity, respect for authors, the history of these publishing houses and their identity.”
Grasset: a prestigious institution
Grasset, founded in 1907, made its name after famous French literary figures such as Marcel Proust, Irene Nemirovsky, François Mauriac and André Malraux.
It became part of the Hachette Group in 1954.
During Nora’s tenure as CEO, which began in 2000, it has published works by authors including Nobel laureates Han Kang and Isabel Allende.
Edited by: Sam Dusan Inayatullah