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This study examines YouTube channels reporting on French news and current affairs. After identifying the relevant channels, the study identifies the top 10 viewed videos of each channel during the year 2023. Manual annotation has been conducted for content, presentation format, engagement style, and position regarding the government and mainstream media. Each channel has also been coded for its business and communication strategies. Correspondence analysis is used to extract the most emblematic news content and presentation styles, while hierarchical clustering is used to categorize the channels into clusters of different genres. From the demand-side perspective, the study also examines the network of users commenting on the top 10 videos to assess the audience overlap between the identified clusters. . Five clusters of alternative news channels are identified, differing in presentation, style, and partisanship. Network analysis showed audience overlaps, notably between satire, alternative, and re-information clusters. Most channels earn revenue through branding and cross-media activities, occasionally supporting each other. These clusters act as mediators between politics, entertainment, and re-information, serving diverse audiences. Uncertainty remains regarding future dynamics and competition with established news outlets.
Maud Reveilhac (Sun,) studied this question.