French first lady finds fellow reporter in Eleanor Roosevelt

PARIS (AFP) ― French President Francois Hollande’s partner Valerie Trierweiler, a journalist, has written in her first article as first lady about former U.S. first lady Eleanor Roosevelt’s career in journalism.

The article, published in Thursday’s issue of Paris Match magazine, reviews a biography by Claude-Catherine Kiejman called “Eleanor Roosevelt: First Lady and Rebel,” and retraces Roosevelt’s own dabbles in journalism ― not without irony.

“Fancy that! A first lady journalist is nothing new. Of course instead of crying scandal we have to look to the other side of the Atlantic to find this singular case,” Trierweiler wrote.

She recounted how Roosevelt gave up her political activism “with regret” when her husband, Franklin Roosevelt, was first elected president in 1932 but found an outlet in writing editorials for the Women’s Democratic News that spoke out against discrimination and encouraged women to assert themselves.

Roosevelt also wrote a syndicated newspaper column called “My Day” in which she told readers about life in the White House.

“She didn’t hold back from addressing any topic, whether social, political or international, especially on the eve of World War II,” Trierweiler noted.

“Not only did the entire American press not find this controversial, but Eleanor became extremely popular thanks to this column she kept up until her death.”

Trierweiler, a twice-divorced 47-year-old mother of three teenagers, became France’s unofficial first lady when Hollande, whom she began dating in 2007, won the French presidency on May 6.

Paris Match, where she has worked for 22 years, said Monday that she would keep her job there but cover culture instead of politics.

France’s national journalists’ union recently raised concerns about reporters who are in relationships with members of Hollande’s new government, saying they should “distance themselves from coverage of events which may involve their relationships.”