Complaints over ‘racist’ coverage

PARIS: France’s broadcasting watchdog said Tuesday it was examining complaints that commentary during French TV coverage of the Rio Olympics has been “colonialist”

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PARIS: France’s broadcasting watchdog said Tuesday it was examining complaints that commentary during French TV coverage of the Rio Olympics has been “colonialist” and “xenophobic”. The head of sport at state-funded France Televisions, Daniel Bilalian, has come under attack from an anti-racist group for his commentary of a segment of the opening ceremony about Brazil’s history in which he described African slaves as “necessary” for the country’s industrial development.