CubaPope Francis signed this Friday, January 23, the eve of the Feast of Saint Francis de Sales, his annual message for the Day of Social Communications. The text exhorts journalists to communicate from an effective and vital encounter with reality, bearing in mind the invitation of the Gospel: "Come and see" (Jn 1:46). The biblical stories evoked by the pontiff refer to the need to enter those circumstances that are intended to be narrated, get involved with them and make them known from the commitment to the truth.
The current conditions of journalism, where news traced from one medium to another, fake news and decontextualized phrases abound, lead to a reflection on the way in which information flows. Social networks, which the Pope described as a "formidable instrument" to communicate, should not be demonized but used for the benefit of the truth.
In his message, the pontiff thanked the work of those journalists who report from risk situations, from war conflicts to the pandemic. He also appreciated its prophetic and denouncing role in those most disadvantaged nations. Likewise, he valued their role as creators of memory, in coherence with his message last year, where he pointed out that "life becomes history."
In a meditation on the history of faith, Francis notes that the encounter, the personal experience and the beginning of the journey are an essential part of the human story. The Pope concluded his message to communicators with the recommendation to inform "communicate by finding people where they are and how they are", without succumbing to prejudice or stereotypes of any kind.
Five phrases of Pope Francis that summarize his message to communicators
1. «To be able to tell the truth of life that becomes history, it is necessary to get out of the comfortable presumption of" as is already known "and get going, go see, be with people, listen to them, pick up the suggestions of the reality, which will always surprise us in any aspect ».
2. «Also journalism, as a narrative of reality, requires the ability to go where no one goes: a movement and a desire to see. A curiosity, an openness, a passion ».
3. “We have long discovered how news and images are easy to manipulate, for a myriad of reasons, sometimes just for a banal narcissism. This critical awareness pushes not to demonize the instrument [las redes sociales] , but to a greater capacity for discernment and a more mature sense of responsibility, both when it is disseminated and when the content is received.
4. «In communication, nothing can completely replace the fact of seeing in person. Some things can be learned only by experience. In fact, he does not communicate only with words, but with his eyes, with the tone of his voice, with gestures ».
5. «The challenge that awaits us is, therefore, to communicate by finding people where they are and how they are»