World needs free, rigorous and objective information: Pope Leo
Vatican City: The world needs free, rigorous and objective journalism, otherwise people will be unable to distinguish between “fact and fiction” and “true and false”, as in a totalitarian rule, Pope Leo said on Thursday.
He said free access to information is a pillar that upholds the edifice of our societies. “For this reason we are called to defend it (freedom of press) and guarantee it,” he said. In an address to invited executives of global news agencies at the Vatican, the Pope said journalism should be “freed from unfair competition and from the degrading practice of so-called clickbait.” PTI executives were among those present.
He added that news agencies are at the frontlines of protecting the “right to accurate and balanced information.”
Pope Leo is a strong proponent of free press, and immediately after being chosen to the position, he had met journalists from around the world to appeal for the release of imprisoned journalists. The Pope said the communications sector “cannot” and “must not” separate its work from sharing the truth as he urged news agencies “never sell out your authority”.
Underlining the media’s crucial role in forming consciences and helping critical thinking, he said it is a “paradox that in the age of communication, news and media agencies are undergoing a period of crisis.”
“Similarly, those who consume information are also in crisis, often mistaking the false for the true and the authentic for the artificial. Yet, no one today can say, ‘I did not know’,” he said.
Pope Leo, the first American to occupy the throne of St Peter, also called for vigilance to ensure that technology does not replace humans, pointing out that Artificial Intelligence is changing the way information is received.
“Algorithms generate content and data at a scale and speed never seen before. But who controls them? Artificial intelligence is changing the way we receive information and communicate, but who directs it and for what purposes?”agencies
