A voice and a face

Do the Church media appeal more to the old than to the young? Can the Church have a meaningful presence in the media? Is there an anti-Church conspiracy in the media?

These questions should have provided food for thought during the commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the Catholic weekly Leħen is-Sewwa (held on September 25) and the discussion during the diocesan assembly (held on September 26) that discussed The Digital Face of the Lord, the pastoral programme for the Church and the media. I declare an interest as I am somewhat involved in the writing of the document.

The first edition of Leħen is-Sewwa rolled off the printing presses on September 1, 1928. Several editors dedicated their time, energy and talent for the paper. These men, those who helped them, and Catholic Action which owns the paper should be heartily congratulated. Leħen is-Sewwa, like the Church and with the Church, passed through myriad crises and challenges during these 80 years. A core of loyal readers accompanied the paper on its journey, finding in it a faithful companion, informer and educator.

Leħen, together with the much younger Il-Ġens Illum, constitute the Church's presence in the newspaper sector. The readership of both newspapers is low.

The Media Warehouse Survey for the period November 2007 to April gives them a readership of between 5,000 to 6,000. They only fare better than the Wednesday edition of Malta Today (2,000 readers) and the Sunday Illum (5,000 readers), but are far behind the other papers. With such figures these papers cannot have as much impact on public opinion as one would wish.

Another problem which afflicts the 'Church' news papers (a problem they share with the two 'Church' radio stations) is that too many of their readers (and listeners) are over 60. The Church also needs media through which it can reach out to a much younger audience.

These are just two problems that The Digital Face of the Lord deals with. One of the difficulties that emerged during consultation meetings held to discuss the document, concerns the Church's vision of the media, their role in society and their relationship to the Church's mission. It seems that many in Malta still believe that the Church is under siege. Peter's momentary cry to the Lord: "I am drowning" seems to represent the perpetual state of several Maltese Catholics.

This mentality is foreign to the media document. It proposes a forward-looking vision far away from the anti-Church conspiracy theories so popular with some. It outlines the setting up of new Church structures such as an effective Communications Office, a greater presence in the new media, and an aggressive media education programme to empower audiences.

The linchpin of the programme is co-ordination and synergy between different Church entities working in the area. This has always been the Achilles heel of Church entities. The fact that out of all the entities involved in the media apostolate only the board of Media Centre and RTK bothered to make written submissions during the consultation process does not bode well for future co-operation.

One hopes that the lack of input at this stage will be compensated by concrete action when push comes to shove. It is expected that the proposed programme (or an amended version) will be adopted as Church policy later on this year.