For the few parts of France who can't receive the FM signal, longwave broadcast still exists : the programme feed is transferred over ISDN lines to the transmitting station situated on the territory of the villages of Berus and Felsberg in the Saarland, Germany.

Europe 1 played a role in the May 68 political crisis by being the principal source of information untainted by government sanction; it was nicknamed "barricade radio".

When the industrialist Jean-Luc Lagardère (mass media and military) became president of Europe 1 group, some feared the network might lose its independent point of view.

[2] Over the last fifty years, the best-known programs on Europe 1 have included: 'Pour ceux qui aiment le jazz' ("For those who love jazz") hosted by Daniel Filipacchi and Franck Ténot, 'Signé Furax' ("Signed, Furax", a comic adventure serial), 'Salut les copains' ("Hi, friends", a pop music programme), 'Campus' (book reviews, interviews with literary personalities, and chat about current events and culture), 'Vous êtes formidables' (a programme devoted to "demonstrations of solidarity"), 'Bonjour, monsieur le maire' (aimed at rural France), 'L'horoscope de Madame Soleil' (astrology), 'Top 50' (a reprise of the musical charts), and 'Le club de la presse' ("Press Club", political conversation).

Noted journalists, presenters, and performers have included: Patrick Topaloff, Maurice Siegel, Jean Gorini, André Arnaud, Pierre Bouteiller, Pierre Bellemare, Francis Blanche, Daniel Filipacchi, Frank Ténot, Lucien Morisse, Robert Willar, Albert Simon, Laurent Ferrari and Madame Soleil.

[6] This announcement led to a strike by the employees of Europe 1 expressing the concern that the station will lose its journalistic independence and become influenced by partisan politics.

on C8, half of whose viewers voted for the far-right in the European Parliament elections and during which he has made controversial statements leading to fines of €7.5 million.

[7][8] Journalists interviewed by franceinfo claimed that they were told to report on stories reflecting the official editorial line desired by Bolloré, including a particular focus on crimes committed by illegal immigrants and a ban on referring to the National Rally or Reconquête as far-right parties, while mandating that La France Insoumise be referred to as far-left.

[9] Two days after the launch of the show, the Regulatory Authority for Audiovisual and Digital Communication issued a first warning to Europe 1 for significantly overrepresenting far-right guests.

It was reported on 23 December 2019[11] that an email from Lagardère Active had confirmed that the longwave service of Europe 1 would cease transmission at midnight CET on 1 January 2020.