Pope advises journalists: Don't turn war into a video game

Image: Vatican Media

Source: Vatican Media

In a meeting yesterday with Italian journalists from Rai 2, the Italian state-owned TV channel, on their 50th anniversary, Pope Leo warned against the media becoming a "megaphone" for power, especially in times of conflict. "Always, but especially in the dramatic circumstances of war such as those we are experiencing, information must guard against the risk of turning into propaganda," he said.

In these times of conflict, "the task of journalists, in verifying the news so as not to become a megaphone for power, becomes even more urgent and delicate - and indeed, essential," he continued.

The Pope highlighted that it is the media's job "to show the suffering that war always brings to populations, to show the face of war, and to tell it through the eyes of the victims so that it does not turn into a video game."

He acknowledged that "it is not easy within the few minutes of a news broadcast and its analysis segments," but underlined that "this is the challenge."

Reflecting on this anniversary, the Pope highlighted the importance of bringing a human perspective to the media in the face of rapid technological developments.

He noted that various changes have occurred in television journalism in the last decades, such as "the transition from analog to digital."

But he emphasized "no technological innovation can replace creativity, critical discernment, and freedom of thought."

"Since the challenge of our time is that of artificial intelligence, I think of the need to regulate communication according to the human paradigm and not the technological one," he said, adding that this means, "ultimately, knowing how to distinguish between the means and the ends."

The Pope also noted the importance of openness in the media and of not trying to simply confirm one's own perspective.

He applauded Rai journalists for their "secularism and the pluralism of news sources," even in state television. He defined secularism as "a rejection of ideological preconceptions and as an open-minded view of reality."

"We all know how difficult it is to let ourselves be surprised by facts, encounters, the perspectives, and the voices of others; how strong the temptation is to seek out, see, and listen only to what confirms our own opinions," he said.

"But there can be no good communication, nor true freedom and healthy pluralism, without this openness."

Praising Rai, the Pope said that throughout its history they have always presented diverse cultural perspectives. This diversity, "especially when animated by a spirit of friendship, has been an added value" to the identity of the news broadcaster.

It has been "a source of richness, and an example of dialogue that still has much to teach us today - in an era dominated by polarization, ideological closed-mindedness, and slogans that prevent us from seeing and understanding the complexity of reality."