fantassin
07-10-2004, 04:52 AM
From the australian army website.....
The French mil connection
Army’s Lt Simone Heyer takes you to the Paris HQ of one of the world’s leading miltary magazines
A LIFT the size of a broom cupboard takes us high above the streets of Paris. After various introductions, we’re led to a room packed floor to ceiling with books, neatly organised folders and shelves heavy with military memorabilia.
Berets, medals, uniforms, pictures, kit, flags, the walls are covered with plaques and photographs – and a bag on the floor holds tiger skin. We’re not in a museum or the office of some kind of military trainspotter. It’s the newsroom of RAIDS, the French military magazine.
RAIDS editor Eric Micheletti, is an unassuming man, which belies his accomplishments.
He lists a few of the places he’s visited in the course of his work at RAIDS since 1986. Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Kosovo, Burma, Philippines, Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Persian Gulf, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Kashmir – and this was during war time.
He’s featured militaries from around the world in non-warlike situations – Central America and Africa – Senegal, Ivory Coast.
Mr Micheletti has five Paris-based staff and about 20 stringers around the world.
RAIDS belongs to the publishing house Histoire & Collections.
It’s not an official military publication, but Mr Micheletti’s team has full access to the French forces, with the exception of SF. It’s a picture-rich magazine, profiling French military and giving military news from around the world.
A self-taught writer and photographer, he finds himself out on the road compiling what he knows his readers love – military action.
During his RAIDS career, Mr Micheletti says he’s had a few brushes with death – but only one was serious.
“We were in Croatia and were driving to see friends on the boarder, but we didn’t know it had been taken by the Serbs,” he nonchalantly recalls.
“We saw a car ahead with the doors open and nothing else. It was very bad, but it was too late to turn around.
“Some people shot at our car, we then lost control – the bullets narrowly missed us.
“Serbs captured us, then beat and interrogated us.
“We were given to the Army, then police for more of the same.
“We were accused of being mercenaries or spies.
“They didn’t care that we were just journalists.”
The ordeal lasted five days, then they were released and told to catch a bus to the nearby French Embassy.
They found out that the car they’d seen at the border belonged to two Russian journalists who had been shot dead.
Mr Micheletti’s can-do attitude has seen the production of 215 action-packed monthly magazines.
He says he is in a unique position.
“In the French language, we have no equivalent – and there doesn’t seem to be too many military magazines [of the same calibre] in the English language.
“We are adopting a technical style in our magazines. We realise that people don’t necessarily know about their equipment.
“We plan to teach them, and also about other armies’ equipments." The RAIDS crew also put out special publications, like "Special Forces in Afghanistan", highlighting the work of the various SF in the area.
“Our books are a success in the French language, we don’t have anything else like it,” Mr Micheletti says.
RAIDS has a distribution of 36 000, with 85 per cent of readers are military personnel.
*
The French mil connection
Army’s Lt Simone Heyer takes you to the Paris HQ of one of the world’s leading miltary magazines
A LIFT the size of a broom cupboard takes us high above the streets of Paris. After various introductions, we’re led to a room packed floor to ceiling with books, neatly organised folders and shelves heavy with military memorabilia.
Berets, medals, uniforms, pictures, kit, flags, the walls are covered with plaques and photographs – and a bag on the floor holds tiger skin. We’re not in a museum or the office of some kind of military trainspotter. It’s the newsroom of RAIDS, the French military magazine.
RAIDS editor Eric Micheletti, is an unassuming man, which belies his accomplishments.
He lists a few of the places he’s visited in the course of his work at RAIDS since 1986. Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Kosovo, Burma, Philippines, Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Persian Gulf, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Kashmir – and this was during war time.
He’s featured militaries from around the world in non-warlike situations – Central America and Africa – Senegal, Ivory Coast.
Mr Micheletti has five Paris-based staff and about 20 stringers around the world.
RAIDS belongs to the publishing house Histoire & Collections.
It’s not an official military publication, but Mr Micheletti’s team has full access to the French forces, with the exception of SF. It’s a picture-rich magazine, profiling French military and giving military news from around the world.
A self-taught writer and photographer, he finds himself out on the road compiling what he knows his readers love – military action.
During his RAIDS career, Mr Micheletti says he’s had a few brushes with death – but only one was serious.
“We were in Croatia and were driving to see friends on the boarder, but we didn’t know it had been taken by the Serbs,” he nonchalantly recalls.
“We saw a car ahead with the doors open and nothing else. It was very bad, but it was too late to turn around.
“Some people shot at our car, we then lost control – the bullets narrowly missed us.
“Serbs captured us, then beat and interrogated us.
“We were given to the Army, then police for more of the same.
“We were accused of being mercenaries or spies.
“They didn’t care that we were just journalists.”
The ordeal lasted five days, then they were released and told to catch a bus to the nearby French Embassy.
They found out that the car they’d seen at the border belonged to two Russian journalists who had been shot dead.
Mr Micheletti’s can-do attitude has seen the production of 215 action-packed monthly magazines.
He says he is in a unique position.
“In the French language, we have no equivalent – and there doesn’t seem to be too many military magazines [of the same calibre] in the English language.
“We are adopting a technical style in our magazines. We realise that people don’t necessarily know about their equipment.
“We plan to teach them, and also about other armies’ equipments." The RAIDS crew also put out special publications, like "Special Forces in Afghanistan", highlighting the work of the various SF in the area.
“Our books are a success in the French language, we don’t have anything else like it,” Mr Micheletti says.
RAIDS has a distribution of 36 000, with 85 per cent of readers are military personnel.
*