Hope is action, says Maria Ressa at major Vatican event

VATICAN CITY – Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa spoke at a major Vatican event on Saturday, January 25, and challenged world religions to work together in the face of rising autocracy by governments and Big Tech.

Ressa, chief executive officer of Rappler, was a keynote speaker at the Jubilee of the World of Communications organized by the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication. The other speaker was Irish journalist Colum McCann.

“Even at the worst of times, hope is not passive; it is active, relentless, and strategic. Our faith traditions carry centuries of resilience; we need to share those stories of transformation,” Ressa said.

“Imagine if we all worked together. We just might stem the tide, stop the dam from falling, and heal our world,” said the 61-year-old Filipino-American journalist.

The crowd — composed of thousands of Catholic communicators around the world — gave her a standing ovation.

Saturday’s event was held at the Vatican’s 6,300-seater Paul VI Audience Hall, the iconic venue for Pope Francis‘ indoor general audiences.

The stage used by Ressa, a former CNN bureau chief, was the same platform from which the 88-year-old Argentine Pope delivers his Wednesday address.

Standing at 5 feet and 2 inches, Ressa addressed the crowd against the backdrop of a renowned bronze sculpture of Jesus — 66 feet wide and 23 feet tall — inspired by the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Japan, in 1945. Titled “Resurrection” and inaugurated nearly 50 years ago, the sculpture resembles an explosion and symbolizes Christ’s victory over death.

Ressa recalled the Hiroshima bombing in her speech on Saturday in the context of how “new technology enabled the rise of fascism.”

“For many years now, I’ve sounded the alarm: just like in Hiroshima, an atom bomb exploded in our information ecosystem,” she said.

“In pursuit of power and money, technology enabled insidious manipulation at the cellular level of all of our democracies: of us — the voters — microtargeting fear, anger, and hate; seeding metanarratives that destroyed trust,” she said.

She remembered telling Pope Francis that the way technology “rewards lies” is against the Ten Commandments.

“The men who control this transformative technology wield godlike power, but they’re far from God. They’re only men, whose arrogance, lack of wisdom, and lack of humility is taking the world down a dark path. Increasingly, by their own words and definition, their unchecked and unaccountable power is resembling a cult,” Ressa said.

“Which is why religion, faith, the Catholic church, becomes more important today,” she added.

MEETING. Rappler CEO and Nobel laureate Maria Ressa talks to Pope Francis at the Vatican City on January 25, 2025.

Ressa offered four suggestions:

1. Collaborate, collaborate, collaborate. “Build and strengthen trust now to close the fracture lines of society that information operations will try to pound open, pitting…each [of] us against the other.”
   
2. Speak truth with moral clarity. “Silence in the face of injustice is complicity. Whether it’s systemic racism, economic inequality, or the erosion of democratic norms, people of faith must reclaim — you must reclaim — their prophetic voice. Demand transparency and accountability from those who control our public information ecosystems — from governments to Big Tech to media.”
   
3. Protect the most vulnerable. “Support journalists, human rights defenders, and activists who risk their lives. Remember the Martin Neimoller quote from Germany? Here’s our Philippine version, published by our largest newspaper after my first arrest: ‘First they came for the journalists. We don’t know what happened next.’ Your networks can be powerful shields for marginalized communities. Support immigrants, religious minorities, the LGBTQ+, and others who face discrimination. Our collective vigilance can prevent the normalization of hate.”
   
4. Recognize your power. “Building peace is not reserved for heroes; it’s the collective work of people who refuse to accept and live lies. Rappler could not have survived without the help of our community, always reminding me of the goodness of human nature. You are powerful and can be part of a tidal wave of change for the good. And that is powered by love.”

“This time matters. What you choose to do matters,” Ressa said. – Rappler.com