Pope Francis has nominated Matteo Bruni, a long-time staffer at the Vatican press office, as the new Holy See spokesman.
Bruni, 42, was born in Winchester in the United Kingdom and holds both British and Italian passports. Born to a Dutch mother and Italian father he speaks four languages including English, French and Spanish. His multi-lingual, international pedigree will help when responding to a global news media.
As new Director of the Holy See Press Office, he will take over from Alessandro Gisotti, who had served as interim spokesman following the sudden resignations of Greg Burke and Paloma García-Ovejero at the end of last year.
Gisotti, widely considered to have done an admirable job during an intense period of activity in the Francis pontificate, will become one of two deputies to Andrea Tornielli, the Editorial Director at the Dicastery for Communication who runs the Vatican’s media outlets. Speaking to journalists today Gisotti said being catapulted into the role earlier this year felt like being the “designated survivor”, a reference to the US TV series where a junior politician suddenly ascends to being President of the United States. He emphasised that he had only taken on the role on an interim basis.
Speaking after his appointment, Bruni said he wanted to make the press office “more and more a reference point for journalists who tell the story of the Pope and the Holy See to the whole world,” pointing out that up until now he had largely worked behind the scenes.
The new spokesman has worked in the Vatican press office for a decade and for the past six years has overseen the logistics for journalists travelling with the pope on trips abroad, a role that required him to keep a calm, organisational head under pressure.
Bruni, who will take up his new role on 22 July, has links with the Catholic humanitarian group, Sant’Egidio, living with members of the community on the outskirts of Rome while a student. In recent decades the Vatican press office has alternated between members of Opus Dei and the Jesuits.
The Holy See’s first information office was set up in 1939 with the job of informing journalists of the death of Pope Pius XI and releasing details of his funeral and of the conclave that would elect Pius XII. Eighty years later, the Vatican is forced to respond to the relentless demands of a 24/7 digital media age. The job is demanding, and there is no army of press officers on hand to help.
It had been expected that a new vice-director of the press office would be appointed, although that has yet to materialise and some media reports say two women have turned down the job.
Under Francis’ pontificate, sweeping reforms of Vatican communications have taken place, with a development of the role of Director of the Holy See Press Office: this is not a spokesman for the Pope, who takes charge of his own communications, and does not want any public relations filtering of his words or message.
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