Net Neutrality & The MASTER of Social Media (2018)

INTRODUCTION

Among the wonderful technological discoveries which men of talent, especially in the present era, have made with God's help, the Church welcomes and promotes with special interest those which have a most direct relation to men's minds and which have uncovered new avenues of communicating most readily news, views and teachings of every sort. The most important of these inventions are those media which, such as the press, movies, radio, television and the like, can, of their very nature, reach and influence, not only individuals, but the very masses and the whole of human society, and thus can rightly be called the media of social communication.

The Church recognizes that these media, if properly utilized, can be of great service to mankind, since they greatly contribute to men's entertainment and instruction as well as to the spread and support of the Kingdom of God. The Church recognizes, too, that men can employ these media contrary to the plan of the Creator and to their own loss. Indeed, the Church experiences maternal grief at the harm all too often done to society by their evil use. Hence, this sacred Synod, attentive to the watchful concern manifested by the Supreme Pontiffs and Bishops in a matter of such great importance, judges it to be its duty to treat of the principal questions linked with the media of social communication. It trusts, moreover, that the teaching and regulations it thus sets forth will serve to promote, not only the eternal welfare of Christians, but also the progress of all mankind.

What is the media?

An outcome of the historical scientific process by which humankind ‘advances further and further in the discovery of the resources and values contained in the whole of creation’. (John Paul II, Laborem Exercens, n. 25; Vatican II, Gaudium et Spes, n. 34).

They are ‘marvellous technical inventions’ (Vatican II, Inter Mirifica, no. 1) that already do much to meet human needs and may yet do even more.
‘The Church sees these media as ‘gifts of God’ which, in accordance with his providential design, unite men in brotherhood and so help them to cooperate with his plan for their salvation.’(Pope Pius XII, Encyclical, Miranda Prorsus, 1957; Pastoral Instruction on the Means of Social Communications, Communio et Progressio, 1971, n. 2).

The modern media of social communication are cultural factors of progress insofar as it can contribute to the better ordering of human society (Vatican II, Gaudium et Spes, n. 39).
They ‘contribute greatly to the enlargement and enrichment of man’s minds and to the propagation and consolidation of the kingdom of God (Vatican II, Inter Mirifica, n. 2).

‘Modern media offer new ways of confronting people with the message of the Gospel’ (Pastoral Instruction on the Means of Social Communications, Communio et Progressio, 128). The Church ‘would feel guilty before the Lord’ if it failed to use the media for evangelization’ (Pope Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii Nuntiandi, n. 45).

It is ‘the first Areopagus of the modern age’. ‘It is not enough to use the media simply to spread the Christian message and the Church’s authentic teaching. It is also necessary to integrate that message into the ‘new culture’ created by modern communications’ (John Paul II, Encyclical, Redemptoris Missio, n. 37).

The Church’s two-fold aim with regard to the media:

To encourage their right development and right use for the sake of human development, justice and peace – for the upbuilding of society at the local, national, and community levels in light of the common good and in a spirit of solidarity.

The Church seeks ‘honest and respectful dialogue with those responsible for the communication media’ – a dialogue that relates primarily to the shaping of media policy (Pontifical Council for Social Communications, Pastoral Instruction, Aetatis Novae, on Social Communications on the 20th anniversary of Communio et Progressio, n. 8).

The Holy See has been active in this area for several years and is continuing to expand and develop its Internet presence. Church-related groups that have not yet taken steps to enter cyberspace are encouraged to look into the possibility of doing so at an early date. There should be exchange of ideas and information about the Internet among those with experience in the field and those who are newcomers.

The Church needs to understand and use the Internet as a tool of internal communication. The technology is new, but the idea is not. A two-way flow of information and views between pastors and faithful is needed for the expression of public opinion (Pontifical Council for Social Communications, Ethics in Communications, n. 26). The Internet provides an effective technological means of realizing this vision.