The French «media» that spread this news and video was created by Russian propagandists. No other credible sources have written about this incident.
A news story is circulating online that the personal surgeon of Brigitte Macron, the first lady of France, was allegedly found dead in Paris. The doctor’s relatives claim that he had no suicidal tendencies and suspect that he was murdered. He allegedly planned to give an interview to the press and tell the «truth» about Brigitte Macron: that the first lady of France was supposedly born a man and made a gender transition. The news spread not only in Russian, but also in English, French, Spanish, Greek, Serbian and numerous other languages.
However, this is not real news, but a meticulously planned Russian propaganda campaign. The media which all the publications cite actually exist. According to the UrlVoid service, the Enquete Du Jour media site was created on June 25, 2025, just a few days before the spread of this news. The page was filled with content in French on various topics to give the fake site credibility. In addition, the domain is not registered in France — which would make sense for a French media — but in Germany, in the city of Frankfurt am Main.
Under the text is the name and photo of Audrey Parmentier. There is indeed a journalist with that name in France who covers migration and pop culture topics. However, she never collaborated with the «media» Enquete Du Jour and did not write an article about Brigitte Macron, which she reported in X. She commented to the press: «This is really shocking. I found out that I have been writing for this fake news publication since March. It is quite disturbing when you see your own photo, first and last name associated with conspiracy theories. I am a journalist; I have absolutely nothing to do with this content».
All other articles on the site are also signed by the names of real French journalists who actually have nothing to do with the content. Having learned about the situation, some of them plan to file a lawsuit against the perpetrators for impersonation. Moreover, there is no evidence online that a surgeon named François Fevre works or has ever worked in France. The photo of the person provided in the article cannot be found online, so it was likely generated with artificial intelligence.
The propaganda campaign against Brigitte Macron is an example of transvestigation, a conspiracy theory that accuses famous people of having undergone a transgender transition. In 2024, two women who claimed that Brigitte Macron was actually her brother Jean-Michel after transitioning, were found guilty of defamation. The theory has gained popularity in far-right and conspiracy circles despite its absurdity, as Brigitte has three children from her first marriage.
According to the France Info author, Russia is spreading such conspiracy theories in order to destabilize the government, polarize and radicalize French society. We have previously refuted a similar disinformation campaign that Emmanuel Macron’s party is allegedly offering 100 euros to French citizens who vote for it in the parliamentary elections.
