One month has passed since the death of Pope Francis. In that time, a lot has happened in the Catholic world that is global news. Pope Leo is calling for us to create and interpret that news media with peace in mind.
Looking Back at Pope Francis and the Media
I am not a commentator on the papacy. I did not keep up to date on everything that Pope Francis said or wrote. However, I am a practicing Catholic who really grew in faith during Francis’ time as pope. I prayed for him and cared about him, but news about him did not affect my day to day very often.
In college I remember seeing him all over the New York Times which they offered for reading in our cafeteria. Early on, the NYT had claimed him as their guy, praising him and his ideals. I was just starting to dive deeper into my faith, so I thought it was nice that people who were seemingly anti-Catholic before, were now taking interest.
My Introduction to Media Bias
Then I began reading articles with headlines and quotes from Francis that were implying that the church was going to change or had already changed.
This was contrary to what I was learning about in my Bible studies and reading of the Catechism. I knew for certain that the church would not contradict herself.
With that, I learned to ignore most headlines about Francis because they were often intentionally misleading. If I did open an article, I would find the source and try to get back to directly what was actually said and find context.
I had to investigate in order to find the cherry picked quote in its original statement so that I could make sense of it. Thankfully, I would always find that the article was either interpreting the words with a stretch or just blatantly wrong.
I heard Michael Knowles on his Youtube show mention, “Even Francis wasn’t Francis” when discussing whether Pope Leo XIV would be “another Francis”. This summarizes what I am trying to say in 4 words. Basically, some tried to claim him as theirs in American politics, and others shunned him, but in the end, I don’t think he was who many thought because much of what was in the news was hyper sensationalized.
Looking Forward to Pope Leo XIV
Less than one month in, the American media is already trying to pin down our new Pope.
I should get off social media, but I have already seen posts either claiming Leo as “too liberal” or “too conservative”. I don’t think that is helpful. He is a new leader with a new name which signifies a new mission. We can learn some about him from his past roles and his life, but we should learn more from his actions and words today.
My Thoughts on Pope Leo XIV
With that, I think many of us have thoughts about him so far, and I will say that so far I am a fan of Pope Leo XIV. Not that I wasn’t a fan of Francis, it is just that Francis felt at times distant from the American church. Leo on the other hand, has more experience with North America in particular, and for once, I can hear words of the Pope in my native English language. I didn’t realize how nice that would be to not need every word through a translator. Because of that, I think I have paid closer attention to him than I did to Francis.
Signs of Pope Leo’s Mission So Far
Based on the first few weeks, he has already made a few things clear about his papacy. He has said that he chose Leo XIV because Leo XIII addressed social issues in a time of the Industrial Revolution. Now, on the cusp of a new technological revolution – primarily Artificial Intelligence (AI) – Leo hopes to address what this means for work and society.
He has shown signs of Marian devotion and sang traditional chants.
Pope Leo XIV and the Media
With all of the opinions of Francis from both sides, Pope Leo seems acutely aware of how media can make him perceived. I think this makes him choose his words a little more carefully.
One of Pope Leo’s first speeches was to address the media. He encouraged journalists and reporters in the room and around the world to choose truth and peace over these targeted and dividing biases.
“I ask you to choose consciously and courageously the path of communication in favor of peace.”
ADDRESS OF THE HOLY FATHER LEO XIV
TO REPRESENTATIVES OF THE MEDIA
He also said:
“Today, one of the most important challenges is to promote communication that can bring us out of the “Tower of Babel” in which we sometimes find ourselves, out of the confusion of loveless languages that are often ideological or partisan. Therefore, your service, with the words you use and the style you adopt, is crucial. As you know, communication is not only the transmission of information, but it is also the creation of a culture, of human and digital environments that become spaces for dialogue and discussion.”
Collapsing the Tower of Babel
The Tower of Babel is a scenario where the people have too much pride and strive to build their way to heaven. Therefore, God confuses their language, they cannot understand one another and they discontinue their project.
Today we continue to deal with the remnants of that story. We are still fighting to communicate through different languages. Even if we are all speaking English, some of us are speaking right over or right through people. We use different terms, we speak unclearly, or we intentionally mislead in order to win points of favor for our team or against the other. This was especially evident when hearing mainstream media stations like FOX, CBS, CNN, or NBC report about the conclave and the Pope. They would use Catholic language incorrectly or speculate parts of the church changing that metaphysically is impossible.
The world and especially our faith cannot be placed into boxes that correspond with American left-right dynamics. We have to try to see through the biases pushed by one set of politicians or another and try to see events as just that, events that have happened. Sure there is a need for analysis and commentary to try to learn why the events happen or what might result from them; however, that analysis should have reason and logic that tries to avoid deception and gives a charity to the humans involved.
Peace in Media Going Forward
Do I think any of those reporters in that room will change their ways after hearing Pope Leo talk? I would hope so. Unfortunately, bias and emotion sell ad space on websites and TV news channels. I think that some of that bias is unavoidable as well. So what is the solution?
As much as the writers should write with good intentions, we can also strive to read with good intentions.
Maybe we don’t read every headline as truth, look for authentic sources of information that are as close to first hand as possible, or choose where we consume media based on their authenticity.
Communication is key to understanding each other, and if we all try to communicate with the path of peace in mind rather than our egos or agendas, maybe we can speak the same language and work together to build a better kingdom for God here on Earth.
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