Basic Data

First settled by the French in the early seventeenth century, the two islands of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, located in the North Atlantic Ocean south of Canada's Newfoundland, represent the last vestige of France's North American empire, which once stretched as far south as Louisiana. It is a self-governing territorial collectivity of France and, as such, the official language is French. Its population is approximately 7,000, and the literacy rate is 99 percent. The French president is the chief of state, represented locally by a Prefect. Heading the government is a President of the General Council, who presides over a unicameral, 19-seat General Council. The economy is driven by fishing, but disputes with Canada over fishing quotas are contributing to the decline of this industry. The government is trying to expand its tourism industry to provide more income to the country.

As a territory of France, the media of Saint Pierre and Miquelon enjoys freedom of press and speech. There is no daily newspaper; L'Echo des Caps is a municipal weekly magazine founded in 1982 to cover local policy, history, business, and sports. An Internet publication, L'Echo de I'Internet, appears online occasionally.

There are five radio stations, one AM and four FM, serving 4,000 radios. There are 4,000 televisions on the island but no major television stations. There is one Internet service provider.

Bibliography

"Country Profile," CIA World Fact Book (2001). Available from http://www.odci.gov .

"Pictures and the Local Media," St. Pierre et Miquelon (n.d.). Available from http://www.st-pierre-etmiquelon.com .

Jenny B. Davis