Holder of the 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. slot on LCI, the journalist wanted to leave the sets to experience the daily life of Ukrainians in wartime. Testimony.
You left for the first time in April, before returning to the air in Paris and then returning to Ukraine, where you are currently. What does this mean to you?
Thomas Misrachi: The best way to figure out what’s going on is to be there. Fabien Namias, the deputy general manager of LCI, and Thierry Thuillier, the deputy director general of information for the TF1 group, agreed to let me go. On the pitch, it’s tough. After three weeks, I needed to get some normalcy back. But I realized that I had not gone to the end of what I wanted to show. So I asked to leave.
Do you feel more useful in Ukraine?
It is not a question of usefulness. The two jobs are different. Reporting is key. The presentation too. I first told about the liberation of Kharkiv. The end of this conflict is now being played out in the Donbass, where I arrived on May 18.
When do you think the war will end?
No one knows. But what we know of the wars of the XXe century is that the invader has rarely prevailed (in Vietnam, in Afghanistan). We are there in the case of France in 14-18. It is a war of trenches, of artillery. Things can stay frozen for a long time.
Are the Ukrainians aware that Europe supports them?
When we are challenged by passers-by, they first ask us where we come from. When I say that we are French, we see smiles on their faces. They want to talk. We almost act as a shrink.
Until when are you going to stay in Ukraine?
I hope I’ll be there for the end of the story. But if we stay too long, we are no longer aware of the dangers. And we take more risks. It’s good to get back to a normal life. Bombings or blockades are not normal life.
Did your relatives try to dissuade you from leaving?
Those who love me know that being on the pitch is part of my balance. I would have been frustrated and unhappy not to be there.
Why did you finally choose to leave the BFMTV antenna for LCI a year ago?
It’s good, sometimes, to change bosses! I spent sixteen wonderful years at BFMTV, but I no longer had the same desire. I recently intervened in the 1 p.m. and in the 8 p.m. from TF1. It was the right time for me to take the plunge.
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