ROME (AP) — Pope Leo XIV made a significant appointment Tuesday in his effort to restructure Vatican media operations by selecting Maria Montserrat Alvarado, the Mexican-American leader of Catholic media giant EWTN News, to head the Holy See’s communications division.
Alvarado will take over from Paolo Ruffini as the prefect of the Dicastery of Communications, which oversees the Vatican’s broadcasting, radio, digital, publishing and print media outlets. The department operates with one of the largest budgets among Vatican offices.
Leo’s decision to appoint both a woman and a layperson to lead such a significant Vatican office continues a trend established by Pope Francis, who elevated multiple women to senior positions within the Holy See’s administrative structure, which continues to be primarily led by male clergy.
The pontiff, who was born in Chicago, has signaled his intention to transform how the Catholic Church and Vatican share their message globally. As part of this initiative, he has called cardinals to Rome this month for discussions to “reassess the effectiveness of ecclesial communication, including at the level of the Holy See, from a more explicitly missionary perspective,” along with other matters.
Alvarado currently serves as president and chief operating officer of EWTN News, an organization that describes itself as the world’s largest Catholic media network. Based in Washington, D.C., the company operates television, radio, digital and publishing platforms in seven languages. The EWTN network, which typically takes conservative positions, encompasses the Catholic News Agency, National Catholic Register and ACI Group news services, among other divisions.
A Mexico City native, Alvarado came to EWTN as a news presenter following executive roles at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, an organization that has pursued church-state litigation in the United States to defend religious freedom.
Throughout Pope Francis’ tenure, EWTN’s programming frequently showcased English-speaking detractors of the Argentine pontiff. In 2021, Francis condemned such media criticism as “the work of the devil” in remarks that many understood as targeting EWTN.
