The Gorafi relies on paper to escape algorithms

A strange about-face at a time when everyone is swearing by the all-digital world. Le Gorafi, a pure product of the satirical web, is launching a 16-page monthly print magazine in April, with a simple promise: to offer a breath of fresh air away from social media. The magazine will be available by subscription (€6,99 per issue or €71,88 per year) and will arrive at newsstands by Thursday, a deliberate nod to the traditional press it has been parodying since its inception.

This time, behind the joke, the motive is very real. Sébastien Liebus, the site's founder, admits it: "First, it's to make a lot of money! And second, it's to break free from algorithms." In his account, the same refrain recurs: content disappearing from news feeds as platforms like Facebook, Instagram, or X move, giving readers the impression that the site has vanished for weeks. A satirical media outlet thrives on circulation, sharing, and immediate reactions. When the machine breaks down, visibility collapses.

A snub to the platforms, a bet on the object

A snub to the platforms, a bet on the physical object. Another irritant, more insidious: automated moderation, boosted by AI, which, according to Sébastien Liebus, "doesn't understand sarcasm or satire." A deliberately outrageous headline can be blocked because a single word triggers the alarm, without any irony, context, or nuance, as if humor now had to pass a technical inspection. In a landscape where the French press has already had its share of battles with web giants over content remuneration and audience dependence, the Gorafi's initiative sounds like an attempt to regain control, in its own way.

The fact remains that print is changing the game. Less virality, more of an object to keep, to give as a gift, to leaf through on a corner of the table, with exclusive content promised in each issue before being released online a month later. The first issue sets the tone, from "Disneyland Paris: Goofy euthanized after biting a visitor" to fake ads like "Trufina Rottweiler kibble, baby flavor." Le Gorafi, owned by DC Company (which also owns Konbini) and run by a dozen freelancers, is therefore testing a path that many pure players are closely watching: diversifying to no longer depend on an algorithmic feed, and seeing if, in 2026, a newspaper can still carve out a niche… by staying away from the internet.