There is more

The French Catholic press discusses about changes needed in content, work and relations with the readers. The XVII Francis de Sales French Catholic press study (Ffpc – www.presse-catholique.org), held in Annecy at the end of January was attended by almost 200 French journalists and some foreign delegations. A country amid pessimism and "sanctuarisation". "Difficulties in projecting oneself into the future and worry about the current economic situation" are the two features that according to Brice Teinturier, sociologist, currently are affecting French society. As a result of such pessimistic attitude, caused by a mistrust in solving endemic problems such as unemployment, here comes "the temptation of sanctuarisation, that is, an attachment to items that convey a feeling of solidity and homeliness, reappraisal of values of the past, inspiration from the principles of precaution, fear of otherness and withdrawal into one’s identity. " According to Teinturier, however, new signs are also coming to the fore: "Freedom from preconceived attitudes, acceptance of self-imperfection, investment in the present, search for friendly solutions and new forms of cooperation".The revolutionary side of Christianity. "We are living in the epoch of wondering. Existential research has never been so important: people are looking for a promise of freedom from the schemes and the crushing burdens of the current crisis. For the first time, however, the thought that the future will be worse than the past prevails. However all this offers great opportunities to people, because everything is questionable and can be reorganized, and therefore everything is possible". These were the words spoken by Paola Spaventa-Habri from the communication and market survey agency Qualeia. Answering the question "How can one successfully renew one’s audience?" the researcher stated that the Catholic press should "make spirituality and faith become burning issues again, questioning faith again in the light of the evolutions of metaphysics, science and social sciences in the contemporary world, based on an anthropological approach to faith, showing also the revolutionary sides of Christianity. Paola Spaventa-Habri said that In order to do that, a new path is necessary: " A progressive walk from the profane to the sacred, through open questions possibly raising Christian answers; a path leading people from their deepest needs to the Word offering them multiple, not univocal answers".Not only generation gaps. "The newsroom runs the risk of digital breach between generations, linked to the ownership and usage of information media". As a matter of fact also "professional practices and the Church’s vision" create gaps according to Sophie Lebrun (Messages) and Gwenola de Coutard (Pèlerin), two young journalists. "Perhaps we are less politicized, educated and less theologically equipped, we are more individualistic in living our faith", " we do not want to be called digital natives and are aware of the web’s frailty and possible illusion that what exists is only on the internet and all that exists in on the web". The two young journalists asked their colleagues to "be more curious about the web and learn about the communities that operate in it; wonder about tools and means to allow the Catholic thought to be disseminated on the web; to animate open and straightforward pressroom debates, in tackling issues and providing real information". Streets and pressrooms. "The Catholic press’ mission today is to observe and try to understand the reasons of widespread states of mind. We must provide reasons to believe in tomorrow, looking for examples on the playing field, without having to learn lessons by heart or giving recipes or falsifying hard facts". These were the words spoken by Bernard Bienvenu, president of Ffpc, at the end of the Annecy conference. "The journalist is first of all a person who is in touch with earthly matters and should not be someone who is just gathering news from the newsroom, without being truly in touch with what is really happening in life and the city".Thinking about Europe. At the Annecy conference Catholic Journalists were called upon to give their contribution to Europe that is undergoing "a season of skepticism and pessimism". The Italian Federation of Catholic weeklies stressed the importance of this issue. The meeting among Catholic Journalists of different European Countries, in Anney, to share opinions marked the initial step towards a renewed European project.