PAMPLONA, Spain, AUG. 26, 2011 (Zenit.org).- All eyes were on Madrid last week, according to a media study that showed more than 50,000 reports were published on World Youth Day.
The University of Navarre study found that of the 54,000 reports on Benedict XVI’s pastoral journey to Spain, 30,000 were published by the Spanish press. Some 12,000 were published in other European agencies.
An additional 6,200 news reports proceeded from Latin America; 2,000 from the United States and Canada; 400 from Oceania; and 200 from African countries.
In total the report identified news on WYD being reported in 108 countries, some from places as remote as Fiji (two articles) and Sierra Leone (two articles), and even in countries with obstacles to religious liberty, such as Sudan (one article), Saudi Arabia (four articles) and Cuba (42 articles).
The study pointed out that media attention on WYD was widespread, as opposed to other recent events associated with Madrid.
If the Pope’s last stay in Spain is compared with other religious events, the impact of WYD was 3.3 times greater than his visit to Barcelona to inaugurate the Holy Family basilica and even 1.3 times greater than John Paul II’s beatification.
