VATICAN – Pope Francis has raised concerns over Vatican media spending against the number of people being reached in their various broadcasts.
Reports indicate the media unit costs more than all Vatican city embassies around the world combined where in 2021, the Dicastery for Communication had a €43m budget, which translates to about 20% percent of the total budget.
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Francis is said to have issued the critique during his visit to the Dicastery for Communication, Vatican Radio and the headquarters of the Vatican’s newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano.
The Pope asked whether people consumed their news despite the huge budget on the department that plays a key role to the Pontiff, in communicating the Catholic faith to all corners of the world.
The Pontiff also pointed out that their work was not reaching the right audience and wondered how many people listened to Vatican radio and read L’Osservatore Romano.
This comes at a time when the Holy See is facing tough financial times and the Pope has ordered a downward review of salaries and allowances for all Vatican employees.
The country is also facing a pension funding deficit and the head of the Catholic church has ordered salary cuts of between 3% and 10%.
He also paused seniority bonuses for up to two years but at the same time promised not to fire anyone.
Covid-19 restrictions shuttered ticket sales from the Vatican Museums, which is one of the main source of revenue for the Holy See
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