VATICAN CITY - Journalists who have risked their lives and freedom in defense of the truth are an eloquent testimony of the high calling of media professionals, says a Vatican official.
Monsignor Paul Tighe, secretary of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, affirmed this in a commentary accompanying Benedict XVI's message for World Communications Day, to be celebrated this Sunday.
The Pope's message for this year's celebration is dedicated to "The Media: At the Crossroads Between Self-Promotion and Service. Searching for the Truth in Order to Share It With Others."
"This message encourages those who work in the media to attend to the great responsibilities that rest with them and to uphold the highest standards of their professions," Monsignor Tighe said. "In particular, they are urged to be vigilant in their efforts to make known the truth and to defend it 'against those who tend to deny or destroy it.'"
"Media professionals are invited to defend the ethical underpinnings of their profession and to ensure that the 'centrality and the inviolable dignity of the human person' are always vindicated," he added.
The pontifical council secretary noted the Pope's assessment of the threats to journalists' ethical commitment -- such factors as competition for audiences, commercial pressures and ideological prejudices.
"They are warned of the danger of the media becoming the voice of 'economic materialism and ethical relativism,'" Monsignor Tighe added.
Speaking out
In this context, the monsignor recalled the journalists who "have given an extraordinary witness to their commitment to the truth."
"Many journalists throughout the world have suffered persecution, imprisonment and even death because of this commitment and because of their unwillingness to be silent in the face of injustice and corruption," he said.
"Their witness," Monsignor Tighe affirmed, "is an eloquent testimony to the highest standards to which the media can aspire and their example serves as to encourage all media professionals to strengthen their commitment to the truth and, thereby, to serve the common good of all humanity."
Monsignor Paul Tighe, secretary of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, affirmed this in a commentary accompanying Benedict XVI's message for World Communications Day, to be celebrated this Sunday.
The Pope's message for this year's celebration is dedicated to "The Media: At the Crossroads Between Self-Promotion and Service. Searching for the Truth in Order to Share It With Others."
"This message encourages those who work in the media to attend to the great responsibilities that rest with them and to uphold the highest standards of their professions," Monsignor Tighe said. "In particular, they are urged to be vigilant in their efforts to make known the truth and to defend it 'against those who tend to deny or destroy it.'"
"Media professionals are invited to defend the ethical underpinnings of their profession and to ensure that the 'centrality and the inviolable dignity of the human person' are always vindicated," he added.
The pontifical council secretary noted the Pope's assessment of the threats to journalists' ethical commitment -- such factors as competition for audiences, commercial pressures and ideological prejudices.
"They are warned of the danger of the media becoming the voice of 'economic materialism and ethical relativism,'" Monsignor Tighe added.
Speaking out
In this context, the monsignor recalled the journalists who "have given an extraordinary witness to their commitment to the truth."
"Many journalists throughout the world have suffered persecution, imprisonment and even death because of this commitment and because of their unwillingness to be silent in the face of injustice and corruption," he said.
"Their witness," Monsignor Tighe affirmed, "is an eloquent testimony to the highest standards to which the media can aspire and their example serves as to encourage all media professionals to strengthen their commitment to the truth and, thereby, to serve the common good of all humanity."