Vatican media chief resigns over doctored letter scandal…
Vatican's Secretariat of Communication Mons. Dario Vigano' holds a jersey bearing a reproduction of the graffitti of the SuperPope by artist Maupal, Mauro Pallotta, sitting at left, during the presentation of a charity…
https://archive.today/2018.03.21-213120/https://wtop.com/national/2018/03/vatican-media-chief-resigns-over-doctored-letter-scandal/
VATICAN CITY (AP) — The head of the Vatican’s communications department resigned Wednesday after he mischaracterized a private letter from retired Pope Benedict XVI, then had a photo of it digitally manipulated and sent out to the media. A week after The Associated Press exposed the doctored photo, Pope Francis accepted the resignation of Monsignor Dario Vigano and named his deputy to run the Secretariat for Communications for now. But Francis kept Vigano on in the department in a lesser capacity, indicating that he doesn’t believe the problem was all that grave. The so-called “Lettergate” scandal erupted last week when Vigano read aloud part of a private letter from Benedict at a book launch for a Vatican-published, 11-volume set of books about Francis’ theology. Marking Francis’ fifth anniversary as pope, Vigano had held up Benedict’s letter as a sign of the continuity between the two popes, to blunt critics who complain that Francis’ mercy-over-morals papacy represents a theological break from Benedict’s doctrine-minded, theology-heavy papacy.
The scandal embarrassed the Vatican and led to accusations that the pope’s own communications office was spreading “fake news,” just weeks after Francis dedicated his annual media message to denouncing “fake news” and the intentional distortion of information. Francis has frequently chided journalists for only giving half of the story. In his resignation letter dated March 19, Vigano said he wanted to step aside so that his presence “wouldn’t delay, damage or block” Francis’ reform of the Vatican’s communications operations. He didn’t acknowledge that he had misrepresented Benedict’s letter or doctored the photo, saying only that he realized that his actions — despite his intentions — had created controversy and destabilized the communications reform. In his own letter accepting the resignation, Francis said he was removing Vigano reluctantly and praised him for his humility and willingness to work for the good of the church. He asked Vigano to stay on in the communications secretariat in the new position of “assessor,” which in Vatican offices usually amounts to the No. 3 spot.