June 26, 2012

Fox News' Burke Leaves Network To Become Comms Advisor to The Vatican

The Vatican has hired Fox News correspondent in Rome, Greg Burke, as a senior communications adviser. Burke, who has covered the Vatican for Fox since 2001, will leave the network to help improve and coordinate the Vatican's various communications operations, the NY Times reports.

Burke, the Vatican's first communications expert hired from outside the insular world of the Roman Catholic news media, said that he would not replace the Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, but would advise officials on how to shape their message. He said he had turned down the Vatican twice in the past month before accepting the paid position. He will answer directly to officials in the Secretariat of State, the Vatican's executive branch.

"If you look at what the White House has, everyone knows who the spokesman is, no one knows who the secretary of communications is," Burke said, according to the Times report. "It's a very similar job. It's a strategy job. It's very simple to explain, not so easy to execute: to formulate the message and try to make sure everyone remains on message."