Gap between media and Church
Manila (AsiaNews) - The Vatican has often reiterated the importance of social communication, particularly in today's world of high technology. Media plays an important in social communications and the Holy Father himself said that media can contribute to the mission of the Church, thus the church should not alienate herself from it, not to isolate media from the work of the church.
Despite this, former Ambassador to the Vatican and coordinator of the recently concluded National
Congress of the Clergy Tita de Villa told AsiaNews: "We are not yet in that stage." Because media has more often than not misinterpreted or mis-quoted church leaders, they, with very few exceptions, avoid the reporters from the Philippine media. Articles tend to highlight sex scandals rather than vital issues which the Church is trying to convey to the public, as in the recent articles on the issue on the decrease of vocations. [Several broadsheets emphasized the sex scandals in the church as the reason for the decline in priestly and religious vocations.]
"An article may be favorable to the Church but at the end, there is always this reference to the cases of Bishop Yalung and Bishop Bacani. For this reason, although we want to be open, there are obstacles,' says Ambassador de Villa.
One particular example was during the Clergy Congress where media had limited access, except for the three press conferences with Archbishop Gaudencio Rosales of Manila, who spearheaded the congress, and Bishop Luis Tagle. While the participants were given copies of the congress talks, media had access to only two of them.
Thus, media immediately concluded that the talks and discussions were very sensitive that these had to be hidden from public scrutiny.
Most certainly not, says de villa. If media were given full access to the congress, it could disrupt the flow of the congress. "It was the set up of the program. There were events which would be impractical with media goring around."
It is unfortunate, however, that reporters do tend to sensationalize their articles, even church issues. "It is sad to say, young reporters now have a different tract, and they have a particular context which they want to expound."
Despite a lengthy interview with a church person, reporters tend to hook up on a particular word or
sentence, in order to sensationalize a particular issue, even if it is taken out of the interview's context. "So church people are wary, so guarded and defensive about giving interviews," she explained.
Given this mistrust of church people towards media, "We hope a time will come when there will be a mutual realization and mutual mission of both between media and church people, - the realization that we are not fighting each other, that we are all for the common good of the people. The Holy Father himself said: 'We serve the same constituents.'"
In a related issue, the request to have the internationally known Comboni publication, World
Mission magazine, distributed among the participants and exhibit the magazine during the Congress, fell on empty ears. A letter of complaint from the Philippine Comboni provincial to the president of the Episcopal Conference, Archbishop Fernando Capalla, remained unanswered by the organizers.
"The truth is they never asked me, they never wrote me. That is why it saddened me that they wrote
Archbishop Capalla," says Ambassador de Villa. Due to the limited space in the lobby of the center, only eight concessionaires were allowed to sell their products.
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