Pope May Launch Internet News Portal Next Week
- Posted on June 25, 2011 at 5:49am by
Scott Baker
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VATICAN CITY (AP) — The Vatican, whose communications problems are no secret, is taking a leap into the world of new media next week with the launch of a news information portal that Pope Benedict XVI himself may put online with a papal click.
Vatican officials said Saturday that Benedict has been following the development of the portal, which will for the first time aggregate information from the Vatican’s various print, online, radio and television media in a one-stop-shop for Holy See news.
The portal — www.news.va — is being launched Wednesday, the 60th anniversary of Benedict’s ordination as a priest and a feast day in the church.
Monsignor Claudio Maria Celli, who heads the Vatican office that developed the portal and will maintain it, said Benedict may put the site online himself with a click from the Apostolic Palace.
It’s the latest step for the Vatican to bring its evangelizing message to a greater, Internet-savvy audience and follows its forays into Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
It’s also a significant step for the 84-year-old Benedict, who has been bedeviled by communications woes during much of his six-year papacy, much of it the fault of a large Vatican bureaucracy that doesn’t always communicate well internally.
There was his 2005 speech about Islam and violence, his recent comments about condoms and HIV that required no less than three official Vatican clarifications, and his rehabilitation of a Holocaust-denying bishop, among others.
While the portal is designed mostly to provide Vatican news in an easy-to-use setting for the outside world, Celli said he hoped it would also improve the Vatican’s own internal communications by letting various departments know what one another are up to and help provide a more coherent message to the outside world.
“I think that we must educate the Roman Curia of what is the real meaning of communication,” he said Saturday in a preview of the news portal. “Little by little they will perceive that this is the real meaning to be present, to have a relevance.”
Previously, popes have been very much involved in the Vatican’s communications efforts: Pope Pius XI personally inaugurated Vatican Radio in 1931, and Pope John Paul II oversaw the 1995 launch of www.vatican.va — the Vatican’s website.
That site will remain as the Holy See’s main home page and documentation warehouse. And each of the Vatican media that are represented on the news portal will retain their independent sites as well: Vatican Radio, the newspaper L’Osservatore Romano, Vatican Television Center, the Vatican press office and the Fides missionary news agency.
The portal, though, will aggregate their main news, initially in English and Italian then other languages, and be updated three times a day, Celli said. The portal is outfitted for live-streaming of papal events, audio feeds from Vatican Radio, photographs from L’Osservatore Romano and printed texts of papal homilies and speeches.
It’s also designed to be social-media friendly, with Twitter feeds and Facebook links — part of the Vatican’s recent realization that it can reach a wide new audience by interacting with the outside world rather than merely preaching from afar.
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PIGSWILLNEVERFLY
Posted on June 27, 2011 at 12:11pm1917 Bolsevick Revolution until 1941 6% of the world population was communist. 1942-1962, 50% of the world population was communist. In 1961 Pope John XXIII appointed Augustio Casaroli and envoy to Russia to form an alliance for SOCIAL JUSTICE. Every encyclial issued by Popes since 1958 have called for a ONE WORLD GOVERNEMNT. The one Pope, John Paul the 1st was trying to end the corruption and communism in the Vatican and was assassinated 33 days after the Conclave election. See Time Magazine article Dec 11, 1989 Gorbechev/George H. Bush and in between them Augustino Casaroli. The Vatican has taught the communists how to sell communism, by allowing religion in Russia. Pope John Paul II read the World Marxist Review and went to the UN and called for Wealth Re-Distribution. 1962-1989 Mission Accomplished. Thanks to Augustino Casaroli. Read: the book “Vatican” page 560 “How to make socialism work”. Other books: Pontiff, In God’s Name, and The Final Conclave. The Vatican & Russia started all this mess. Educate Yourselves folks.
Report Post »lijjo
Posted on June 26, 2011 at 7:51pmFinally we’ll get the real scoop of what the Vatican is saying…. The secular news never gets it right. I am looking forward to it.
Report Post »Dobodura
Posted on June 26, 2011 at 1:02pmGood idea … I’m surprised it took this long.
Report Post »JEANNIEMAC
Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:43amIn the 1960s, homosexuals were allowed into the seminaries on condition they remain celibate. Many of these men took advantage of the opportunity to gain access to trusting young boys under cover of the collar. Most of the molesting incidents were perpetrated by men from those seminary years. Now seminarians must be tested for psychological problems.
Report Post »It is time for the Church to enter the internet arena, as this is where many people are getting their information.
Concerned Green Beret
Posted on June 26, 2011 at 9:14amLong time overdue. What the Pope really needs to do is start excommunicating politicians, and other civic leaders who activily act against church doctrine. I keep hearing the progressives talk about the love aspects of Christianity. This is true, but God wants his children to acknowledge their sin not embrace it and change it to a new norm. That flies in the face of God. Those people who do that should be excommunicated. Excommunication exists for those who not only will not admit their sin, but actively rebuke God and fight against God.
Report Post »JGraham III
Posted on June 26, 2011 at 10:37amWould that do any good? Many politicians who openly profess “christianity” do so only to gain favor with their constituency. Nancy Pelosi comes to mind; but I do not believe she would care deep down if the Church excommunicated her. Her ‘god’ appears to be her power and position and no other. Sadly the Roman Catholic Church has compromised their perceived authority, at least in this country by all the negative press they have received of late with the sex scandals their priests have committed, and so excommunication would have little effect, I think. As I am not Roman Catholic, I do not understand why there is a prohibition on marrriage for priests. If Peter was indeed the first Pope, he was married. The Lord healed his mother in law. There would be far fewer sex scandals if the priests were allowed to follow the ‘normal’ channels for sex and marry.
Report Post »dontbotherme
Posted on June 25, 2011 at 4:56pmI think this is a good idea. Hope it works out well for all.
Report Post »TomFerrari
Posted on June 25, 2011 at 9:31pmsurprised it took them this long.
Report Post »vennoye
Posted on June 25, 2011 at 2:31pmAm sure their faithful followers will be glad to have this….if the messages have been incoherent.
Report Post »NOBALONEY
Posted on June 25, 2011 at 1:49pmI think the Vatican should be working on securty in Spain where their holding The World Youth Day in August.
Report Post »JGraham III
Posted on June 25, 2011 at 1:43pmI wonder if the Huffington Post will ‘borrow’ news items from them?
Report Post »TomFerrari
Posted on June 25, 2011 at 9:31pmI‘m surprised they haven’t already done that.
Report Post »fastfacts
Posted on June 25, 2011 at 11:08pmYOU KNOW THE LIBERAL MEDIA IS GOING CRAZY OVER THIS, JUST LIKE THEY DID WHEN GLENN INTRODUCED GBTV
Media Matters is going to be watching this channel almost as much as Fox News just to destroy it: http://tiny.cc/r9rhk Even the Media Matters Exec admitted it.
Report Post »STAR SPANGLED SPAMMER
Posted on June 26, 2011 at 4:18amGetting my news from the Vatican is like going to FOX news website every Sunday to worship God.
Should I go to church every Sunday and read a newspaper or Bible?
What will they report on? Will they have a daily report on all the child molesting cardinals and bishops? Maybe they can print all the hidden books left out of the bible? or the dead sea scrolls?
Stay out of the media business Vatican.
(“trust nobody”)….Power to the People!!!!
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