Pope Leo warns media against turning war into propaganda

Vatican City— Pope Leo on Monday urged journalists to focus on the human suffering caused by war and avoid reporting that risks becoming propaganda by glorifying conflict or amplifying the voices of those in power.

Speaking during a meeting with broadcasters from Italy’s TG2 television news programme at the Vatican, Leo called on reporters to portray the realities of war through the experiences of its victims.

He appealed to journalists “to show the face of war and tell it through the eyes of the victims, so as not to turn it into a video game.”

Leo warned that in periods of intense conflict, information can easily drift into propaganda if journalists fail to carefully verify facts and maintain editorial independence.

“In the dramatic circumstances of war, such as those we are experiencing, information must guard against the risk of turning into propaganda,” he saidJournalists must work to verify news and ensure they do not become “a megaphone of power,” he added.

Although the pope did not reference a specific conflict in Monday’s remarks, he has intensified appeals in recent days for an end to the expanding U.S.–Israeli war with Iran.

On Sunday, Leo called for an immediate ceasefire in what he described as the “atrocious violence” of the conflict, marking some of his strongest comments since hostilities escalated.

Leo’s warning about portraying war as entertainment echoed comments earlier this month from Blase Cupich, who criticized the White House for sharing a social media video featuring footage from the Iran conflict intercut with scenes from video games and action films.

Cupich described the video as “sickening,” arguing that such imagery risks trivializing the realities of war and the suffering of civilians.