This article deals with women stunt reporters—French journalists Maryse Choisy, Marise Querlin, and Odette Pannetier—who chose to investigate under cover in the 1930s. Using various disguises, they made investigations into brothels, tricked their way into politicians’ home, and performed interviews under fake identities. Undercover reporting compensated for their difficulties in asserting themselves in a press created by and for men. It gave them a way to compete with male colleagues who were famous for sensational reportage all over the world. By focusing on such episodes, this article brings to light three heretofore unexplored facets of the history of the French press: immersion investigation, the history of women journalists, and the poetics of the 1930s press.
Marie-Ève ThÉrenty est professeur de littérature française et directrice du centre de recherche RIRRA21 (EA 4209) à l’université Paul-Valéry-Montpellier 3. Elle est spécialiste des rapports entre presse et littérature, des imaginaires média tiques, de poétique du support. Elle a publié de nombreux livres et articles parmi lesquels La Littérature au quotidien : Poétiques journalistiques au XIXesiècle (2007) ; La Civilisation du journal : Histoire culturelle et littéraire de la presse au XIXesiècle (2011), codirigée avec Dominique Kalifa, Philippe Régnier et Alain Vaillant ; et avec Amélie Chabrier, Détective, fabrique de crimes (1928–1940) (2017). Son prochain livre, Femmes de presse, femmes de lettres : De Delphine de Girardin à Florence Aubenas, sortira en 2017.