French advertising agencies are seeking to exploit a wave of gossip about First Lady Carla Bruni’s rumored pregnancy, poking gentle fun at a story she has refused to confirm or deny.
The 43-year-old supermodel-turned-singer married President Nicolas Sarkozy in 2008 and has since given birth to an album of self-penned ballads but no new heir — despite repeated rumors.
With Sarkozy languishing in the opinion polls and facing a tough battle for re-election next May, speculation is again rife that the Italian-born heiress may be carrying a pre-poll surprise.
Photo: Reuters
照片：路透
Bruni herself did nothing to slow the rumor mill weeks ago when she told an invited panel of readers of Le Parisien newspaper that her “lips are, in a sense, sealed” when asked about a pregnancy.
The French press is traditionally more respectful of the private life of public figures than its British or US counterparts, but that has not stopped advertisers from profiting from the buzz.
“So, Carla, do you feel like eating strawberries, or not?” asked a mother’s wear firm in the pages of Liberation, referring to the popular theory that expectant mothers crave soft fruit.
Photo: Reuters
照片：路透
Meanwhile, a car firm marketing a new minivan asked: “Dear Madame Bruni, would you perhaps be in the market for a family-sized car?”
Sarkozy, 56, has three sons from previous marriages, and Bruni a 10-year-old son with the philosopher Raphael Enthoven.
(AFP）
法國廣告公司利用第一夫人卡拉‧布魯妮的懷孕傳聞風波，稍微揶揄布魯妮拒絕承認也不否認的一篇八卦報導。
現年四十三歲由超級名模轉型歌手的布魯妮，自二零零八年與總統尼可拉‧沙柯吉結婚後，只產出一張由自己創作的抒情專輯，儘管謠言不斷，始終未有新子嗣。
鑒於沙柯吉苦於挽回低迷民調，同時還要面對明年五月嚴峻的連任選戰，關於這位義大利出生的女繼承人的猜測再度沸沸揚揚的炒起，可能讓選前民調增添幾分驚奇。
布魯妮並未採取任何舉動緩和數週前的傳聞，當她被問及懷孕一事時，她對受邀的《巴黎人報》讀者小組說，她的「嘴唇在某個意義上是封住的。」
相較於英美媒體，法國媒體傳統上更尊重公眾人物的私生活，但這並未阻止廣告商想從這個懷孕傳聞中牟利。
法國《解放報》內頁的孕婦服飾公司廣告問道：「那麼，卡拉，妳想吃草莓，還是不想？」意指待產母親們想吃軟水果的通俗理論。
同時，行銷廂型休旅車款的汽車公司廣告寫道：「親愛的布魯妮夫人，妳也許會想買一輛家庭房車吧？」
五十六歲的沙柯吉在前幾次婚姻中育有三子，而布魯妮則與哲學家拉斐爾‧安特霍芬育有一位十歲的兒子。
（法新社／翻譯：林亞蒂）
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