I am the Crown Prince of France

Chapter 68: Controlling Public Opinion for My Own Use

Robert continued, "Your Highness, if we forcibly shut down newspapers without the support of the courts, public opinion will turn against the royal family...

"You see, a few years ago, there was an uproar over something they called 'freedom of the press.' The royal police arrested some people, but it led to a flood of articles criticizing the Crown. In the end, His Majesty had to release those individuals."

At that time, France was in a strange situation. Under the influence of the nobility, novelists and tabloid journalists constantly fabricated "little stories" about the royal family. These people could operate freely as long as they weren't caught in the act. Reading gossip about the royal family had become a daily amusement for the public.

On the other hand, any sign of dissatisfaction from the royal family was seized upon and blown out of proportion, leading to widespread criticism.

In the end, this was the result of the royal family completely losing control of the public narrative.

Seeing Thérèse remain silent, Robert cautiously added, "Moreover, Your Highness, shutting down a few newspapers won't solve the problem. If you close one, two more will pop up to continue spreading rumors. Even if we were to shut down every non-official newspaper, as the old king once did, they would still use pamphlets...

"In fact, Her Majesty the Queen's main concern is to contain the situation as much as possible. Of course, if we find solid evidence, we will definitely punish the rumor-mongers.

"For instance, we arrested the editor of The Merry Man after finding a manuscript in his office slandering Her Majesty. But as of now, there is no evidence against other newspapers."

Thérèse glared at him, angry. "If the newspapers don't have evidence of insulting the royal family, the pamphlets certainly do, don't they?

"I heard from Dati that those pamphlets are filled with insults towards me and my mother—blatant ones! Why haven't you arrested them?"

Robert grimaced. "Your Highness, those pamphlets are usually created by one or two people in some dark basement and then secretly printed. It's very difficult to track them down..."

Thérèse fell silent.

She had grown up hearing all sorts of slanderous rumors about the King and Queen; they were almost constant. She knew that if the secret police could catch those responsible, they would have done so already.

Joseph, standing nearby, frowned deeply. He had come here hoping to use the secret police to deal with the newspapers attacking the tax bill. But Robert's reminder made him realize that the situation was far more complicated.

It was likely that the noble factions were waiting for the royal family to resort to force, at which point they would immediately stir up public opinion and link the tax bill to "royal tyranny." The tax bill would become even more vulnerable.

The judiciary and public opinion were mutually reinforcing, and the nobility had a tight grip on both. It was no wonder that when Louis XVI was executed, he wasn't even given a chance to defend himself.

Thérèse's eyes suddenly filled with tears. She curtseyed slightly to Robert. "Count Robert, I'm sorry for losing my temper. This isn't your fault."

Robert quickly responded, "I understand your anger, Your Highness. There's no need to apologize."

Thérèse, tearfully clutching her round, blue-gray Chartreux cat from her maid, turned and walked out of the room.

Joseph wanted to comfort her, but he didn't know what to say.

He desperately wanted to take action against those unscrupulous newspapers, but his rational mind told him that doing so would only fall into the noble factions' trap.

As Robert had said, shutting down one newspaper would only lead to countless others, followed by pamphlets.

Even in the time of Louis XV, when censorship was at its strictest, imprisoned journalists had secretly started their own "newspapers" within the prison walls. And it was during that time that Enlightenment thinkers like Rousseau and Montesquieu emerged in droves.

By now, France had undergone the Enlightenment, and freedom of the press was deeply ingrained. It was no longer possible to control public opinion through force as in the past...

At that moment, Joseph suddenly paused.

Wait, he thought. I've been letting my anger lead me into a mental trap.

Why should I use force to control public opinion?

What I need isn't to suppress public opinion but to control it, to make it work for me! I don't need to eliminate public opinion!

This realization made Joseph's eyes light up, and his thoughts began to clear.

Just then, Thérèse's maid walked past him. Joseph gently stopped her and whispered, "Please tell my sister that I will make sure all these rumors disappear and that those who spread them will apologize to her."

Dati looked surprised. Although she thought the Prince was merely trying to comfort the princess, she nodded gratefully. "Thank you, Your Highness. I will certainly tell the princess."

After bidding Robert farewell, Joseph returned to his chambers, deep in thought about how to take control of public opinion.

As someone who had witnessed the battles between various factions on modern internet platforms, he knew very well that the key to controlling the narrative was having the largest audience.

If your voice could reach 90% of the people, while your opponents could only reach 10%, then what you said would become the truth!

In this era, the primary means of communication were newspapers, books, and pamphlets. So how could he use these tools to quickly expand his audience?

He immediately thought of how Jin Yong had used The Smiling, Proud Wanderer to rapidly elevate his newly founded Ming Pao into a bestselling newspaper.

People in the 18th century had few entertainment options, and Joseph had plenty of "weapons" just as powerful as The Smiling, Proud Wanderer.

In terms of content, even if all the newspapers and publishers in Europe were combined, they wouldn't be a match for what he had to offer.

So, first, he needed his own publication, and then he could use high-quality content to quickly capture the readership.

With this in mind, he immediately instructed Emond, "Please gather all the information on newspapers and printing houses in Paris as quickly as possible."

"Yes, Your Highness."

As Emond left, Joseph continued to ponder: After content comes pricing and distribution channels...

Various plans began to take shape in Joseph's mind, and his frown gradually faded. A battle for public opinion? Bring it on.

The royal family had lost control of the narrative for many years, but it was time to take it back!

Before three o'clock in the afternoon, Emond returned, covered in dust, and respectfully laid a thick stack of documents in front of Joseph.

These were detailed records of all the newspapers in Paris. Newspapers had to be registered with the court, and there was nothing secret about the registration information, so it was easy to obtain.

Joseph carefully reviewed the information on all 57 newspapers and several printing houses in Paris before finally settling on The Paris Commercial News.

It was a small newspaper with a circulation of less than 800 copies, but it was exactly what he needed.

(End of chapter)

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