Pope León XIV Urges Media To Guard Human Dignity

On January 24, 2026, as millions around the globe marked the 60th World Day of Social Communications, Pope León XIV delivered a message that resonated far beyond the walls of the Vatican. In a world increasingly defined by digital technology, artificial intelligence, and the relentless churn of social media, the pontiff’s words arrived as both a warning and a call to action. His message, published on the liturgical memorial of Saint Francis de Sales—the patron of journalists and communicators—urged everyone, from believers to communication professionals, to embrace an ethical, human, and responsible approach to the media in this new era of technological revolution.

The central theme Pope León XIV chose for this milestone commemoration was as evocative as it was urgent: "Custodiar voces y rostros humanos"—"Guard voices and human faces." This phrase, as reported by Gaudium Press, encapsulates not only the importance of protecting each individual’s identity and dignity in communication, but also the need to preserve the very essence of humanity in our social and media dialogues. The Pope made it clear that communication is no longer just a tool; it has become the very context in which our human experience is shaped and defined.

In his message, the pontiff did not shy away from the darker side of the digital age. He highlighted the radical transformation wrought by digital platforms, algorithms, and artificial intelligence—tools that now generate news feeds, create images, and even simulate human voices and faces. According to the Pope, these innovations, while powerful, carry profound risks. He warned of practices that threaten to dehumanize dialogue, such as the spread of deepfakes, deceptive chatbots, and manipulated content. These, he cautioned, "can erode mutual trust and create parallel realities that are difficult to distinguish from the truth." As he put it, "A communication that omits or distorts the voice and face of the other betrays the very essence of human relationship."

But Pope León XIV’s message was not merely a lament. It was also a blueprint for action. He called for a renewed commitment to digital literacy—one that blends technical competence with ethics, empathy, and moral responsibility. He stressed that "uniquely human capacities like empathy, ethics, and moral responsibility cannot be delegated to machines." In his view, digital tools must serve the human community, not replace it. He stood firmly against any tendency toward polarization, hatred, or superficiality, insisting that "the dignity of the person cannot be sacrificed on the altar of technological efficiency." Authentic communication, he argued, is born from real encounters between voices and faces, from respectful dialogue, and from the capacity to listen.

The Pope’s message was particularly pointed when it came to the responsibilities of journalists, educators, content creators, and all who operate in the vast world of communication. He called on them to "protect truth and human dignity in their words, images, and editorial choices." In an era where advanced technologies can distort reality, the Pope drew attention to the danger of AI models imposing "modes of thinking that replicate stereotypes and prejudices present in the data they feed on." He warned of the risk of becoming "trapped in networks that manipulate our thoughts and perpetuate and deepen existing social inequalities and injustices." The threat, he said, is the creation of "true hallucinations," where statistical probability is sold as knowledge and approximation as truth—a phenomenon that could easily infect the media landscape.

According to EFE, the Pope specifically addressed media companies, urging them not to allow algorithms to drive their content strategies at the expense of professional values and the pursuit of truth. "Media companies and communication enterprises cannot permit algorithms oriented to win at all costs a battle in which attention prevails over fidelity to their professional values and the search for truth," he stated. He was unequivocal about the need for transparency, especially in the age of artificial intelligence. "All content generated or manipulated by AI must be clearly labeled and distinguished from those created by people," he insisted, adding that the media must also "protect the authorship of the work of journalists and other content creators."

The Pope’s message went further, declaring that "information is a public good." He emphasized that constructive public service is built not on opacity, but on "transparency of sources, inclusion of the subjects involved, and a high standard of quality." He called for an urgent push to educate people about media, information, and AI. "All stakeholders—the technology industry, legislators, creative companies, academia, artists, journalists, and educators—must be involved in building and implementing a conscious and responsible digital citizenship," he urged.

Drawing a striking parallel with the past, Pope León XIV compared the current digital revolution to the Industrial Revolution, which required basic literacy to help people adapt to new realities. "Just as the Industrial Revolution required basic literacy to allow people to react to novelty, so too does the digital revolution demand digital literacy, along with humanistic and cultural education, to understand how algorithms shape our perception of reality," he explained. The message was clear: innovation should not be shunned, but must be guided so that it serves the growth of the individual, rather than contributing to marginalization or exclusion.

The Pope’s reflections were not addressed solely to the Catholic world. He extended his call to all of civil society, inviting everyone to recognize communication as a tool for peace, dialogue, and inclusion. He urged a collective commitment to ensure that "every voice counts, every face is respected, and every person can participate fully in building a true, authentic, and human communication horizon." The World Day of Social Communications, celebrated on the feast of Saint Francis de Sales—a figure renowned for his dedication to dialogue and the proclamation of truth—served as a timely reminder of the essential role that communication plays as an instrument of encounter, unity, and hope in today’s world.

As the 60th World Day of Social Communications drew to a close, Pope León XIV’s message stood as both a challenge and a beacon. In an age of breathtaking technological change, he called on all of us—not just journalists and media professionals, but every member of society—to safeguard the human heart of communication. In doing so, he offered a vision of media not as a tool for manipulation or division, but as a means of building understanding, trust, and, ultimately, peace.