The smoking bans have barely been enacted in France and already several journalists this side of the Atlantic have wallowed in tired old stereotypes about the French “surrendering”. Our first example is Canada’s Times Colonist. Peter O’Neil and Megan Ainscow of CanWest News Service ran the following headline: “French surrender to smoking ban”. The worst offender however is Jon Bauer, Herald Writer in Everett Washington for the “Buzz Blog”. Bauer wrote a short blurb on the Heraldnet.com Website, resorting to the usual grab bag of French stereotypes.

French surrender again: This time it’s their cigarettes. (…) Some French purists, especially those with pencil-thin mustaches and berets, complain that the ban will kill the atmosphere of the French cafe. Maybe so, but they’ll always have Jerry Lewis.

Send your complaints to the Herald
E-mail to letters@heraldnet.com
Fax to 425-339-3458
Mail: Letters, P.O. Box 930, Everett, WA 98206.

Please be polite and informative

Marc St Aubin du Cormier

 

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