Vatican Radio has signed a radio production and broadcasting agreement with Malta's Public Broadcasting Services (PBS), the EU country's national radio and television broadcaster. Vatican Radio's Director General, Father Federico Lombardi signed the accord this week in Valletta together with PBS president Tonio Portughese . The agreement between the two long-time members of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) will permit the exchange of programming and archive material and training in the field of broadcasting and telecommunications.
Tracey McClure spoke with PBS
President Tonio Portughese who says "for us it is an important break-through. The agreement is already yielding results because every Sunday at noon we are transmitting the live broadcast from St. Peter's of the Angelus by Pope Francis. And this is very well considered by a wide cross-section of Maltese people, people in old peoples' homes, people in hospitals, but also in private residences. So this is one step already which is very important for us to have this live transmission every Sunday."
Listen to Tracey McClure's brief interview with Tonio Portughese: http://media01.radiovaticana.va/audiomp3/00418180.MP3
"Another area which is important to us as well is the possibility to have access to the eighty year old archives of Radio Vatican. This is a gold mine for us and a fact, also here we have a first important result through this collaboration: Radio Vatican has just passed on to us the Radio Message of July 1964 by Pope John XXIII addressed to the Maltese people" on the occasion of celebrations marking the 19th centenary of St. Paul's shipwreck of St. Paul on Malta. "And this includes an exhortation," Portughese adds, "an appeal to the Maltese people to protect and nurture their Christian faith and also a blessing in the Maltese language. This is an historical document which we are already using on Radio Malta, also analyzing it, having comments both by our Archbishop Msgr. Paul Cremona and by the Vicar General... so this is again another important point."
"The third aspect," Portughese continues, "
from Monday through Friday at 8:05 o'clock on the Radio Malta, the national radio station, we broadcast what is called Vatican View Point (produced by Vatican Radio's English Service). Normally at 8:00 punctually, we broadcast from London live, the BBC – British Broadcasting Corporation's international news from London. And this is now being followed immediately by the Vatican View Point which is a high-level program, addressing various topics, various challenges related not only of interest to the Catholic Church but I would say to various aspects of our life: social, political and cultural life."
More on the interview with PBS' Tonio Portughese will follow next week.
Tracey McClure spoke with PBS
President Tonio Portughese who says "for us it is an important break-through. The agreement is already yielding results because every Sunday at noon we are transmitting the live broadcast from St. Peter's of the Angelus by Pope Francis. And this is very well considered by a wide cross-section of Maltese people, people in old peoples' homes, people in hospitals, but also in private residences. So this is one step already which is very important for us to have this live transmission every Sunday."
Listen to Tracey McClure's brief interview with Tonio Portughese: http://media01.radiovaticana.va/audiomp3/00418180.MP3
"Another area which is important to us as well is the possibility to have access to the eighty year old archives of Radio Vatican. This is a gold mine for us and a fact, also here we have a first important result through this collaboration: Radio Vatican has just passed on to us the Radio Message of July 1964 by Pope John XXIII addressed to the Maltese people" on the occasion of celebrations marking the 19th centenary of St. Paul's shipwreck of St. Paul on Malta. "And this includes an exhortation," Portughese adds, "an appeal to the Maltese people to protect and nurture their Christian faith and also a blessing in the Maltese language. This is an historical document which we are already using on Radio Malta, also analyzing it, having comments both by our Archbishop Msgr. Paul Cremona and by the Vicar General... so this is again another important point."
"The third aspect," Portughese continues, "
from Monday through Friday at 8:05 o'clock on the Radio Malta, the national radio station, we broadcast what is called Vatican View Point (produced by Vatican Radio's English Service). Normally at 8:00 punctually, we broadcast from London live, the BBC – British Broadcasting Corporation's international news from London. And this is now being followed immediately by the Vatican View Point which is a high-level program, addressing various topics, various challenges related not only of interest to the Catholic Church but I would say to various aspects of our life: social, political and cultural life."
More on the interview with PBS' Tonio Portughese will follow next week.
