Pope Leo XIV at May 12 meeting with media. Credit: CatholicVote (McKenna Snow)
VATICAN CITY // Pope Leo XIV today in his first address to the media called for the release of journalists imprisoned for reporting on the truth and urged that communications efforts must be rooted in the pursuit of peace.
When he first arrived in the Paul VI Audience Hall, the congregation stood and applauded for a long period of time for the newly elected Holy Father. When he spoke, he began with a joke in English remarking on the ongoing cheers.
“Buongiorno! Good morning,” he said, “and thank you for this wonderful reception! They say when they clap at the beginning it doesn’t matter much. If you are still awake at the end, and still want to applaud, thank you very much!”
After the laughter settled, he delivered his full remarks in Italian, thanking the media for their work in recent days, which he described as “truly a time of grace for the Church.”
He recalled that one of the eight beatitudes given by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount is “Blessed are the peacemakers.”
“This,” Pope Leo said, “is a beatitude that challenges all of us, but it is particularly relevant to you, calling each one of you to strive for a different kind of communication, one that does not seek consensus at all costs, does not use aggressive words, does not follow the culture of competition and never separates the search for truth from the love with which we must humbly seek it.”
“Peace begins with each one of us: In the way we look at others, listen to others and speak about others,” he continued. “In this sense, the way we communicate is of fundamental importance: We must say ‘no’ to the war of words and images, we must reject the paradigm of war.”
He then turned to focus on a particular set of journalists who were not in the room — those currently in jails around the world facing punishment for their truthful reporting.
Pope Leo said he “reiterate[s] the Church’s solidarity with journalists who are imprisoned for seeking and reporting the truth while also asking for their release.”
“The Church recognizes these witnesses — I am thinking of those who report on war even at the cost of their lives — the courage of those who defend dignity, justice and the right of people to be informed, because only informed individuals can make free choices,” he said. “The suffering of these imprisoned journalists challenges the conscience of nations and the international community, calling on all of us to safeguard the precious gift of free speech and of the press.”
He thanked the media who have been reporting in Rome on Holy Week, the death of Pope Francis Easter Monday, and then the conclave, which he noted were intense days of work.
“Yet, even on this occasion, you managed to recount the beauty of Christ’s love that unites and makes us one people, guided by the Good Shepherd,” he said.
Emphasizing that “[w]e are living in times that are both difficult to navigate and to recount,” Pope Leo encouraged all people not to turn away, but to face the difficulties and “never give in to mediocrity.”
“The Church must face the challenges posed by the times,” he continued. “In the same way, communication and journalism do not exist outside of time and history. Saint Augustine reminds of this when he said, ‘Let us live well, and the times will be good. We are the times.’ (Discourse 311).”
He thanked the media for efforts to go beyond interpreting the life of the Church through stereotypes and cliches, and for having instead “captured the essence of who we are and conveyed it to the whole world.”
The pope also spoke briefly on artificial intelligence and the problematic use of ideology in communication. He likened “the confusion of loveless languages that are often ideological or partisan” with the Tower of Babel, built in Genesis 11 in an attempt for the people to “make a name for themselves” — and in response to their industrious presumption, God causes them to all speak different languages so they cannot understand one another. The tower’s construction ceased, and the people were scattered.
Pope Leo said that the media must prioritize communication that brings people out of the “Tower of Babel” experienced through ideological or partisan language; consequently, he said, how media is used is essential.
“As you know, communication is not only the transmission of information,” he said, “but it is also the creation of a culture, of human and digital environments that become spaces for dialogue and discussion.”
This mission is increasingly important amid technological developments such as artificial intelligence, “with its immense potential, which nevertheless requires responsibility and discernment in order to ensure that it can be used for the good of all, so that it can benefit all of humanity,” he said, adding that all people have some share in this responsibility.
“Dear friends, we will get to know each other better over time,” he said, noting that recent special days have been experienced together and then shared through social media, TV, radio, and the internet. “I sincerely hope that each of us can say that these days unveiled a little bit of the mystery of our humanity and left us with a desire for love and peace.”
In his conclusion, he reiterated Pope Francis’ message for January’s World Day of Social Communications, which the late pontiff had called for the “disarming” of communication of all prejudice and resentment.
“We do not need loud, forceful communication, but rather communication that is capable of listening and of gathering the voices of the weak who have no voice,” Pope Leo said in reflecting on Pope Francis’ message. “Let us disarm words and we will help to disarm the world. Disarmed and disarming communication allows us to share a different view of the world and to act in a manner consistent with our human dignity.
“You are at the forefront of reporting on conflicts and aspirations for peace, on situations of injustice and poverty, and on the silent work of so many people striving to create a better world. For this reason, I ask you to choose consciously and courageously the path of communication in favor of peace.”