Pope Leo XIV has appointed Maria Montserrat Alvarado, a Mexican-American media executive, as the new prefect of the Dicastery of Communications, making her the first woman to lead a Vatican department. Alvarado, currently president of EWTN News, will oversee the Holy See's extensive media operations, including television, radio, online platforms, publishing, and its newspaper.
Her appointment marks a significant step in the Pope's efforts to reform the Vatican's global messaging. Alvarado is both a layperson and a woman, aligning with a trend set by Pope Francis, who elevated several women to leadership roles within the male-dominated Vatican hierarchy.
Alvarado's background includes her current role as president and chief operating officer of EWTN News, described as the world's largest Catholic media organization. Its operations span television, radio, online, and publishing in seven languages. Before joining EWTN as a news anchor, she held leadership positions at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, an organization involved in church-state legal battles in the U.S.
The appointment comes with a notable historical backdrop: during Pope Francis's pontificate, EWTN's programming frequently featured English-speaking critics of the Argentine pope. In 2021, Francis publicly condemned such media criticism as 'the work of the devil,' comments widely understood to be aimed at EWTN.
Pope Leo XIV, who was born in Chicago, has expressed a desire to reform how the Catholic Church and the Vatican communicate globally. He has convened cardinals for a meeting later this month to reassess the effectiveness of ecclesial communication from a more explicitly missionary perspective.
