Let the wise speak

There's a particular kind of phone call that many of us know well — the one where someone you love, someone sharp and funny and full of life experience, passionately repeats something they read online that is completely, demonstrably false. And you sit there on the other end of the line, wondering: how do you even begin to respond to that without turning a catch-up into a war?

For Marta and I, that someone was our fathers. Two men, five thousand kilometres apart, speaking different languages, living entirely different lives — and yet somehow circulating the same conspiracy theories with the same unshakeable confidence. To their journalist daughters.

You can't stop calling your father. So we decided to do something more creative instead.

From a concept to co-creation

France is ageing. According to INSEE, more than 17 million people are aged 60 and over, representing over a quarter of the population, and that proportion continues to rise. Far from disengaged, older citizens remain among the most consistent voters. Research from Cevipof shows that turnout increases with age: in the 2022 presidential election, abstention among younger voters (18–34) approached 35–40%, compared with roughly 15–20% among those over 60. A similar pattern appeared in the legislative elections, where studies by Ipsos found that turnout among under-30s was below 30%, while nearly 60% of those aged 65 and over voted.

Yet this civic weight coexists with a persistent digital divide. The Baromètre du Numérique 2024 (CRÉDOC) reports that around 27% of people aged over 60 do not use the internet at all. Among those aged 75 and over, a large majority lack basic digital skills, either because they are offline or because they struggle with essential online tasks.

The result is a striking imbalance: a generation that plays a decisive role in democratic life, but remains particularly exposed to the risks of an increasingly digital public sphere, from misinformation to online fraud.

Journalism in a theatre

To address this issue, we initially considered a video podcast. However, early audience research and an intergenerational ideathon (that's something like a creative brainstorming session between strangers) we organised to refine the idea quickly challenged that assumption. What many participants wanted was not simply access to information, but a shared experience and a meaningful connection with younger audiences.

While Laissons Parler Les Sages may well eventually extend to YouTube or television, we first needed to test this renewed concept in front of a live audience. That is how Laissons Parler Les Sages I.A. Quelqu’un was born. We developed the project with the support of the IPI incubator, leading to a theatre show about artificial intelligence, digital scams and the internet at the Théâtre des Clochards Célestes in Lyon.

As France is preparing for the next presidential election, our ambition is to take Laissons Parler Les Sages across the country and eventually onto screens, into libraries and community spaces, and in time onto television. We believe this format can become the reference point for digital literacy among older adults. We've seen what happens when you treat that audience with genuine respect and a little bit of irreverence.