Dealing with media for the Church

When, in 1987, after 21 years of experience in journalism in Church-related media, then Archbishop Joseph Mercieca asked me to serve as the public relations officer at the Archbishop's Curia, I embarked upon a period of study on how best to handle such a delicate responsibility.

One of the Church documents I consulted was the Pastoral Instruction on Mass Media issued by the Pontifical Commission for the Means of Social Communication. This document states that Church official spokesmen or press officers and, indeed, all those who are identified with the Church in the mind of the public, "should consider the sort of audience they are, at various times, addressing and establish a relationship that is based on mutual trust and understanding. This can only be maintained as long as people have a genuine regard and consideration for one another and a scrupulous respect for the truth".

Reflecting with the help of learned people whom I knew were in a good position to give me sound advice on the realities of the Church in Malta at the time, I decided to adopt Mgr Mercieca's motto, Ilkoll Ahwa fi Kristu, as a basic guideline. Indeed, this motto soon became the corner-stone of my planning and the thrust of my relations with the media, whatever their nature or creed - political or otherwise.

I communicated my guideline mainly with my way of doing things. I was determined to give witness to the message that we are all brothers and sisters in Christ, also by treating all the media and all journalists with the same manner and in the same way, making sure that my dealings with them were invariably fair and equal, and were seen to be so.

As time went by, I found widespread appreciation and support for my approach. It came practically from all sectors. I continued with my work, always keeping in mind that morality resides in the choices human beings make and execute. I had no doubt that good public relations for the Church meant doing the right thing in the right way, and that was exactly what I was striving for.

Another basic target I set for myself from the very beginning was to strive for the best possible achievement through an honest, ethically correct and credible public relations strategy.

A PR person needs not only the ability to communicate properly, the ability to plan/act patiently (PR means much more than issuing communiqués), and the ability to get on with all kinds of people (it isn't just journalists who have questions). He/she has to always keep in mind that to be successful PR must be credible.

Moreover, to be able to do his/her job properly, a PR person who is seen as the Church's representative must relay a kind of personal and professional integrity that consolidates for him the trust of his superiors and also that of all sectors of the press and of the public.

Russell Shaw, former secretary for public affairs of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops (US) and associate professor of Institutional Communication of the Church at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross says that this requires at least two things: "first that the spokesperson operates within the framework policy and on the basis of knowledge and access to facts, so that when he speaks, he is not speaking merely for himself or expressing an opinion or making an educated guess, but speaking for those he represents and saying what is really so; second, that he has a certain leeway to handle unexpected situations according to his own on-the-spot judgment."

I believe experienced and far-looking top managers understand very well that they must keep their PR representative fully informed - preferably in advance and by direct contact - which means that the PR person must also have easy access to them.

In my case, one of the strongest pillars and most valuable assets of my office was that I was accountable directly to the Archbishop and his Vicar General.

Irish journalist John Cooney once wrote: "The media officer has to be both knowledgeable in Church affairs and teaching and in the practice of journalism. It is important that he should be respected by journalists for his honesty and professionalism and that his advice and expert opinion on communication matters should be accepted by churchmen. He must have standing in the Church if his professional expertise is to be fully exercised".

When dealing with journalists a PR person has to be not only always available and able to understand what the media expect from him/her, but also well-prepared to respond accurately, quickly and efficiently.

Dealing with the media on behalf of the Church further means, among other things, dealing with certain journalists and other people who laud practically all that the Church and its institutions do in the social sector, but when it comes to certain moral teachings express reservations and sometimes even oppose the Church with genuine conviction.

Of course, the Gospel and the official teachings of the Church are what they are. But also in such circumstances, a Church spokesman needs to remain calm, composed and able to continue responding in a way faithful to his task of informing and creating understanding through knowledge.

Seasoned PR people know they must be sufficiently humble and adaptable to be able to accept that in PR, one never stops learning.