French
Media Watchdog Arrêt
Sur Images on M6, Enquête Exclusif libellous programme
A recent report by
Arrêt Sur Images, the French media watchdog, highlighted the conviction of
French national TV channel M6 and their production "Enquête
exclusive" by a court for criminally defaming Maltese lawyer Jean-Philippe
Chetcuti Cauchi. The conviction stems from their misrepresentation and editing
of a meeting recording with Chetcuti about Maltese citizenship by investment.
In the original footage, Chetcuti extensively discusses the rigorous due
diligence process for obtaining Maltese citizenship, countering the French TV's
misleading claims.
Loris Guémart from Arrêt
Sur Images, a platform known for scrutinizing media practices, aired the
findings in "Proxy," a show focusing on media analysis. This episode
included a report on M6's unethical journalism, initially published by the Times
of Malta.
During the trial, the
journalists from M6 argued that their footage shouldn't be used as evidence
against them and maintained that their portrayal did not imply any misconduct
by Chetcuti, merely his expertise in immigration law. However, the French Court
of Criminal Appeal, upon reviewing the unedited footage, found Nicolas de
Tavernost and Bernard de La Villardière, executives of Groupe M6 and Ligne de
Front respectively, guilty of criminal defamation. The court noted that their
voice-over narration did not align with the actual conversation recorded, and that their 'interpretation' of the recording was "in bad faith".
Related:
“Distortion of the facts”: French media executives guilty of libel in Chetcuti Cauchi case."
This verdict follows a
sequence of statements refuting the allegations against Chetcuti. Notably, a
2019 audit by the Regulator of the IIP of the Maltese Citizenship Agency and
subsequent assessments by the Investment Migration Council and other professional
bodies found no misconduct by Chetcuti, reaffirming his professional integrity.
Dr. Jean-Philippe
Chetcuti, a prominent figure in Malta's legal field, co-founded Chetcuti Cauchi Advocates in 2002. He has
gained recognition in investment migration and private wealth law, earning
accolades including the Chambers
& Partners HNW Lawyer ranking for Malta.
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