The electronic ceremony. The French Telethon show on Twitter

‪This article aims to show how television, as a traditional media, is embedded in the generalization of the internet and socio-digital networks. Using the example of the French Telethon, we will see that social networks such as Twitter turn the vertical logic of television broadcasting on its head. Nowadays, viewers are likely to react to what they watch, sometimes by challenging the ceremonial and unequivocal status of a TV show, especially when this show supports a public health cause. By recording messages posted on the social network Twitter, we noticed a willingness to criticize, or at least to mock the event. These messages are also an opportunity for political entrepreneurs to rally their community to their cause. Nevertheless, the AFM-Telethon, the French Muscular Dystrophy Association, puts into perspective these critical messages, which are few in number compared with the general consensus around the call for donations. ‪