A video of the beleaguered French President Emmanuel Macron appearing to remove a wristwatch during an interview on French television has been shared alongside claims that the "luxury" item is worth €80,000 ($85,000).
The clip went viral amid ongoing mass protests against the pension reform, which saw over 450 demonstrators arrested in Paris and elsewhere on Thursday, with more than 300 protest events drawing at least a million people nationwide, according to the Associated Press.
These came in response to the Macron government's decision to use special constitutional powers to sidestep a parliamentary vote on the bill that will raise the minimum retirement age from 62 to 64.
The protests drew the attention of the press and social media commentators around the world, attracting a flurry of memes, voicing of support and, inevitably, some misinformation.
On Friday, a short clip from a French TV news program, showing the French president trying to surreptitiously remove his wristwatch, went viral with millions of views across Twitter, Telegram, Reddit and TikTok.
"Macron while asking for sacrifices from the French people realizes he is wearing a € 80,000 watch and like a magician makes it disappear under the table. Unworthy," one tweet with 216,000 views claimed.
"In the middle of his appearance on TV, Macron realized that he was wearing a watch worth 80,000 euros, so he quickly decided to take it off without anyone noticing," said another post with 668,000 views.
In the middle of his appearance on TV, Macron realized that he was wearing a watch worth 80,000 euros, so he quickly decided to take it off without anyone noticing pic.twitter.com/xIhQh4m7iL
— Spriter (@spriter99880) March 23, 2023
Newsweek Misinformation Watch could not immediately find the source of the "€80,000" figure cited by multiple users, nor any reliable evidence to support the claim that Macron's watch is worth anywhere near as much.
One TikTok post suggest without evidence that the watch is a $110,000 F.P. Journe, briefly showing an image of the dial which does not appear to match the watch seen in the original TV segment.
In fact, according to French media reports, the watch in question is made by the French manufacturer Bell and Ross, costs somewhere between €1,600 and €2,400, and Macron has brandished it in other public appearances and photo shoots.
French news channel BFMTV debunked the €80,000 figure in its analysis, concluding instead that the watch is a variation of the Bell and Ross V1-92 Blue Steel, which typically sells for €2,400.
While a number of Bell & Ross models are similar in appearance, including the $3,000 BR 123 Aeronavale Alligator and the $3,300 Heritage BR123 Aeronavale, neither appear to feature the white-colored circle at the bottom of the dial.
The reason—according to L'Independant, a French newspaper that cites an official response from Macron's office—is that the dial on this watch is unique as it was personalized by the manufacturer with the coat of arms of the presidency.
As for the president discreetly removing the watch during the interview, the explanation appears to be rather prosaic: As Macron waved his hand the watch banged loudly against the table, and so was removed to prevent the noise from being picked up by sensitive microphones (the noise can be heard in all the clips with the original sound left in place).
In a statement to L'Independant, the Élysée Palace confirmed as much, stating that, translated from French, "the President does not take off his watch for the sake of hiding it but because he had just banged it loudly against the table. The noise is clearly audible just seconds before the start of the video shared on social media."
The claims about the value of the item were also addressed in the official response.
"Contrary to what is said on social networks too, this watch obviously does not cost €80,000. The price is public and Bell and Rose is a manufacturer that has partnerships with many institutions including the army and the GSPR (group Security of the President of the Republic) which ensures the security of the President," the Élysée responded.
It further noted "that the President of the Republic wears a Bell & Ross BRV192 watch personalized with the coat of arms of the Presidency of the Republic."
Wristwatches, jewelry, and other personal accessories worn by politicians and public figures often come under intense public scrutiny, leading to accusations of hypocrisy and poor optics, but the coverage of these stories is not always accurate, as Newsweek has reported in the past.
The Macron video was just one of several misleading pieces of content circulating on the back of the mass protests, including those shared by American social media personalities and influencers.
A Reddit post appeared to claim that a still from a video proved that French police have joined the protesters.
The original tweet, however, had been removed by the author; other posts featuring the video simply noted that a few police officers had taken off their helmets in solidarity with the demonstrators, but did "join" them.
It is not uncommon for the French police to display gestures of solidarity with the French public taking part in protests, and this fact is often used deceptively or misleading to imply that the police have "switched sides."
One of the recent examples of such manipulation involved old videos of police supporting a doctors' demonstration being used to promote this narrative around the anti-COVID vaccine protests in 2021.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Yevgeny Kuklychev is Newsweek's London-based Senior Editor for Russia, Ukraine and Eastern Europe. He previously headed Newsweek's Misinformation Watch and ... Read more
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