Agency Journalism and the Christian Message (2)

Zagreb, April 23, 2003 (IKA) — At the international colloquium on Agency Journalsim and the Christian Message, held in Zagreb on April 22, 2003, in commemoration of the establishment of the Catholic Press Agency — IKA — Zagreb, the first lecture was delivered by the deputy editor-in-chief of IKA, Suzana Vrhovski. She presented a review of the past ten years of IKA’s activity, pointing out that during this decade IKA — Zagreb has become an indispensable media subject and an essential source for all who want to know something about the Catholic Church in Croatia, the speeches and activities of the Holy Father, the documents and statements of the Croatian bishops, the positions of the Church regarding important questions etc. She noted that from the onset, the agency has attempted to assemble the widest possible circle of correspondents and associates, and has established connections with the media in Croatia and neighboring countries, as well as with Catholic agencies in Europe and the world. She also emphasized that today IKA is particularly proud of its network of associates who cover all the dioceses in Croatia and neighboring countries. Currently, the agency has 91 correspondents, of whom several have worked with IKA from the beginning. IKA collaborates with the Austrian Catholic agency Kathpress, Radio Vatican (especially through its Croatian program in cooperation with its editor, Aldo Sinković), the Slovenian Catholic media, the Italian agency SIR, the American CNS etc. It is also essential to point out the good cooperation enjoyed with the Catholic press agency of the Bosnian-Herzegovian Conference of Bishops, KTA, and the Catholic media in Serbia. Furthermore, today IKA has contracts with all the major media in Croatia. For many, IKA is the main source of news and information about the life of the Church. Ms. Vrhovski also referred to IKA’s coverage of the apostolic visits by Pope John Paul II to Croatia and Sarajevo, publishing activities, web service and bulletin. During the ten years of IKA’s existence, according to Suzana Vrhovski, it has been a credible and respected source of news on the life of the Church, and it will attempt to maintain this status in the future, continuing to perform its journalistic duties professionally and reporting on events in the Church and society from the position of the social doctrine of the Church and according to the principles of ethical journalism. Particular attention will continue to be devoted to the education of young journalists and the development of a network of correspondents and associates, as well as the presence of the agency on the Internet, so that the news about the Church will be of better quality, more current and more accessible to the media and other users, stated Suzana Vrhovski at the conclusion of her presentation.
Media coverage of the Church in Croatia prior to IKA was the topic of a lecture delivered by Dr. Tonči Trstenjak, who referred to his own experience in this area. Describing the difficulties he encountered in covering Church events, which he reported for Radio Vatican, Dr. Trstenjak pointed out that “until IKA was established, there was no systematic collection of information about our Church and we who were daily forced to report on this area organized ourselves as well as we could.” He then spoke about the initiative to establish a Catholic news agency in 1990 by a group of priests who were active in the Catholic media.
Dr. Marko Mataušić spoke about the eternal and the ephemeral in Christian media reporting. In his presentation, he pointed out that in media coverage of the Church, ideas, meditation, talks and discussions prevail, while reporting on events is relegated to secondary importance. In the Church, there are not many events that are of interest to the general public, noted Dr. Mataušić. He also spoke about the attitude within the Church that proclamation via the media is unimportant, that the media are not suitable or effective in transmitting faith, but that the (only) valuable type of communication in this respect is among persons and testimony. Dr. Mataušić partially agrees with this attitude, noting that a prerequisite for successful Christian media activity is the exuberant life of the Christian communities and numerous personal testimonies. Such testimony and the life of the community create highly developed individuals who live the Christian truths. He mentioned that research has shown that people use the media for acquiring information about the Church and faith, but for reflection and confirmation of personal religious questions there are personal contacts with other believers. “Within the framework of theological research, study and the entire Church educational activity, it is necessary to intensify our efforts regarding questions of communication, including media communication,” stated Dr. Mataušić, noting that it is not possible to replace the basic forms of communication in the Church but media communication can provide significant impetus to authentic communication and the overall life of the Christian community. Furthermore, Christian coverage of secular events can also have a positive impact on the selection and construction of media reality, and thereby on future secular events, which is included in the history of salvation. All of this can help the Church to be more useful to the world, to be an engine of development and advancement, as it was when communication was viewed as a significant event in God’s Trinitarian life and in God’s relation toward creation, concluded Dr. Mataušić at the end of his presentation.
Joseph Chittillappily, the general secretary of the International Catholic Union of the Press, UCIP, spoke about New Spiritual Challenges for Catholic Journalism. In his presentation, he said that when he speaks about spiritual challenges, he is not referring to a particular religion, group or institutionalized spirituality but to the freedom of words and expression. When people are able to feel free, they are free to exercise their spirituality, which makes free thought and action possible. This is important for every journalist because it allows him to observe other people and nations with dignity, not only in their problems but in their human dignity. He emphasized that Catholic journalists are called to be discoverers of the truth and a type of public educators in some subjects when the secular institutions fail. It is necessary to become acquainted with a variety of types of spirituality, to be able to use one’s freedom, to travel the world and enrich oneself, but it is necessary to remain faithful to the Good News, to return to one’s own milieu and transmit one’s experiences to others.