Donald Trump has had enough of what he calls 'fake news'. Now, Pope Francis says that he thinks the media need to stop focusing on 'bad news'. Are the two world leaders closer together than one might think? And what should the news be reporting?
Trump has been heavily criticised for promoting verifiable falsehoods as truth while lambasting the mainstream media when it criticises him, condemning sources he disagrees with as 'fake news'. Kellyanne Conway sparked outrage when she defended White House press secretary Sean Spicer's false statements as "alternative facts".
Yesterday Pope Francis called on the media to cease its constant focus on 'bad news' such as war, terrorism, scandal and offer people more 'good news' stories.
In his message for the 51st World Day of Communications, entitled Communicating Hope and Trust in our Time, Francis said: "I am convinced we have to break the vicious circle of anxiety and stem the spiral of fear resulting from a constant focus on 'bad news' (wars, terrorism, scandals and all sorts of human failure)."
The Pope added: "In a communications industry which thinks that good news does not sell, and where the tragedy of human suffering and the mystery of evil easily turn into entertainment, there is always the temptation that our consciences can be dulled or slip into pessimism."
He continued: "I would like, then, to contribute to the search for an open and creative style of communication that never seeks to glamourise evil but instead to concentrate on solutions and to inspire a positive and responsible approach on the part of its recipients. I ask everyone to offer the people of our time storylines that are at heart 'good news'".
A post-truth Pope?
Some would say that Francis' comments lean dangerously close to the rhetoric of Donald Trump, with a disinterest for truth and facts, instead giving people what they want to hear. Later in his address, Francis said: "In and of itself, reality has no one clear meaning. Everything depends on the way we look at things, on the lens we use to view them."
Francis is attempting an important point about how we can all interpret reality differently, but it could be taken as an invite to simply believe whatever we want to believe. In an already polarised world where one can find news outlets tailored to ones own prejudices, we can't afford to relegate reality to 'whatever we perceive it to be'. The echo-chambers of social media already give us the world as we'd like it to be, and as 2016 taught us, it only makes things worse.
To be fair to Pope Francis, his message was not a call for a ban on negative reporting, rather it was more of a plea for communication that can inspire hope and not simply anxiety.
In his words: "This has nothing to do with spreading misinformation that would ignore the tragedy of human suffering, nor is it about a naive optimism blind to the scandal of evil. Rather, I propose that all of us work at overcoming that feeling of growing discontent and resignation that can at times generate apathy, fear or the idea that evil has no limits."
His call is an admirable one, but it could be very dangerous if misunderstood. No one – not the White House press secretary, nor the head of the Catholic Church – should tell journalists what to report. To do so sets a dangerous precedent, and journalistic integrity relies upon freedom of the press: freedom from the government, the Church, or any other powerful organisation.
Let truth have its day
We cannot resign ourselves to a post-truth world, where we only hear what we want to hear. In our wearied world, people need to believe that truth is possible. Such a trust is the basis and beauty of democracy, and is always worth fighting for. It may mean reporting bad news, uncomfortable truths, and horrific tragedies. Positively, only this kind of truth-telling can challenge corrupt power, and shine genuine light on the world.
This week it has emerged that almost all children under five in Borno State in Northern Nigeria have died in a malnutrition crisis. 'Trump 'may get more clicks than 'Nigeria', but the West – already often oblivious to the suffering of those across the world – can't afford to tune out of such tragedy. We may feel better, but we'll lose our humanity as we do.
Pope Francis is right that we need more hope and 'good news' in our time. To share those kinds of stories is a wonderful and important thing. Many of us would be wise to not be consumed by the trap of all consuming, never ceasing 24-hour news, particularly the kind that feeds on polarisation and hatred of 'the other.' We would do well to seek the best in each other, and learn to listen to what others say without erupting in immediate outrage.
Christians too should always take to heart the deep hope that they know to be found in Jesus Christ and his promise of redemption for a broken world. Such a promise is profound, and offers real light to a dark world.
The world is tired of bad news, confused by fake news, and desperately needs good news. To get there however, it really needs the truth.
You can follow @JosephHartropp on Twitter.
