From sunglasses to "for sure": Macron goes viral on social media
The President of the Republic, whose popularity is waning in France, is a hit on the internet
ParisSocial media has been flooded with memes, with remix musicals and parody videos. They've even made T-shirts. The French president's speech in English, Emmanuel Macron at the World Economic Forum in Davos It caused a sensation, but not because of his criticism of Donald Trump or his defense of Europe's strategic autonomy, but because of his repeated use of the expression "for sure" (in Catalan, definitely), pronounced in an exaggerated, emphatic way. "With an accent, it must be said, that is somewhat ridiculous," the newspaper maintains. Le Monde.
Macron's "for sure" has gone viral worldwide, spawning numerous parody videos, especially on TikTok and Instagram, rivaling memes of the French president wearing sunglasses. The Élysée Palace resident, who suffered a dramatic eye hemorrhage weeks ago, which he prefers to conceal with glasses, has also become the butt of jokes. look of aviator with the "made in France" glasses he wore during the same speech in Davos
The glasses, which can be purchased for 659 euros, are designed by Maison Henry Jullien, a century-old French company located in the town of Lons-le-Saunier, in the Burgundy region, which was bought by an Italian company in 2023. After the speech in Davos, Davos shares collapsed.
Among the most viral videos featuring the president's "for sure" is what French singer Bilal Hassani, who represented France at Eurovision in 2019, has done on Instagram. what the French composer French Fuse has posted on TikTok, which has received 285,000 likesAlso, the one by the artist DJ Bens, which has been shared thousands of times. In the video, the DJ does a remix of the song Let's go David Guetta's "for sure" with the French president.
Another example of the global impact of Macron's English expression and his sunglasses is the humorous gesture British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was also immortalized on social media.At a public event in a London theater, Starmer imitated his French counterpart: he put on sunglasses similar to those worn in Davos and took the microphone to say "for sure," to the laughter of the audience. And of himself, who couldn't help but laugh at his own joke.
Even the German government, not usually known for its sense of humor, has made a video in support of the European project, echoing Macron's "for sure." The video is a clear mockery of the US president, who published an AI-generated photograph of himself walking hand-in-hand with a penguin in Greenland, an Arctic island where this animal does not live. In the video released by the German Foreign Ministry, a penguin is seen flying with a backpack bearing the faces of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, the President of France, and the British Prime Minister.
France's undiplomatic responses
The German government's video has also been published by the French Foreign Ministry's new Twitter account, French Response. The account was created four months ago on Elon Musk's social network to combat the trolls and disinformation, but it's not your typical ministry account. It has little diplomacy: glancing at the often heartbreaking, brash, and ironic messages posted by French Response, one might think it's not an official account. "The French joked. Germany followed suit," states the message that replies to the German video.
French Response is dedicated to responding to the influencers, the trollsHe uses undiplomatic language and biting humor to mock embassies, government departments, and government officials—even daring to ridicule tweets from the White House, Putin's special envoys, and Elon Musk. Following Macron's speech in Davos, the French Foreign Ministry's account didn't hesitate to use "for sure" to ironically reply to a tweet from the American ambassador to the EU.
With just over a year left in his second and final term, Emmanuel Macron's popularity is at its lowest point since he became president of France. But his speech at the Davos Forum has given him international visibility—at least online—which is helping to improve his image abroad. The Élysée Palace hasn't commented on the virality of his "for sure" speech and the image of the president wearing sunglasses, but knowing that the French head of state enjoys his public exposure, he's probably delighted with this surge in popularity.