Pope Leo XIV has appointed María Montserrat Alvarado the new Prefect of the Dicastery for Communication, one of the most strategically significant positions in the Roman Curia. Alvarado, currently president and chief operating officer of EWTN News, will assume the role on November 1.
She succeeds Paolo Ruffini, also a layman, who was appointed in 2018. With this decision, Leo XIV deepens the institutional reforms advanced under Pope Francis, extending lay leadership into the Church’s highest governing structures.
Profile: Montserrat Alvarado
- Fluent in Spanish and French; trained as a jazz and classical music performer.
- Held senior roles at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty (2009–2023), contributing to 12 U.S. Supreme Court victories.
- Cases include Little Sisters of the Poor, Muslim death-row inmates, and Catholic social service organizations.
- Most recently president and COO of EWTN News.
The Dicastery: The Vatican’s media and technology command center
Established in its current form in 2015 by Pope Francis, the Dicastery for Communication coordinates every element of the Holy See’s public presence. Under its umbrella sit Vatican News, Vatican Radio, L’Osservatore Romano, and the Holy See Press Office — a sprawling network that operates in dozens of languages and reaches audiences across every continent.
The dicastery’s mandate goes beyond managing outlets. It sets the editorial and technological direction for how the Church communicates in a digital age — overseeing the Vatican’s websites, social media strategy, video production, and archival operations. Amidst a complex landscape defined by artificial intelligence, disinformation, and intensifying competition for public credibility, the dicastery functions as the institution’s interface with the modern world.
For Alvarado, the role draws directly on a career built around religious freedom law, international media management, and institutional leadership — a resume that must have made Pope Leo feel she has exactly the combination of skills and experience that the Vatican needs as it navigates an increasingly complex global information environment.
