AP Tells a Whopper: Says Pope Praised Obama

Now if you're one of those people who believes every word he reads in the press, every video clip he sees on TV, every sound bite he hears on radio -- whether from NPR or a conservative talk show -- and every post he reads on every blog he stumbles on...if you're one of those people, don't read what follows. You might be struck with terminal disillusionment.

The Associated Press, in a story about Pope Benedict's recent meeting with Miguel H. Diaz (see photo), the newly appointed U. S. Ambassador to the Vatican, told a little fib. They gave the story the following headline: "Pope meets new US envoy, praises Obama." The trouble is, nowhere in the story and nowhere in the Vatican's official transcript of the pope's comments does the Holy Father ever praise President Obama. (Praise to CatholicCulture.org for spotting this. By the way, they have a new, redesigned, and very nice website.)

Click here to read the AP story.

Click here to read the Vatican's transcript of the pope's comments.

I just don't know what to make of it. Do you think the AP might be trying to influence Catholics to have a more sympathetic and supportive attitude toward President Obama? After all, if the pope praises him, he must be OK.

And if you'd like to read an interesting report on Ambassador Diaz's recent confirmation hearing, along with a prediction about his likely openness with the Catholic press, click here.