The news given by Pope Francis that Benedict XVI is “very ill” worries the world and is reported in the main international media. “Former Pope Benedict ‘very ill’, says Pope Francis,” headlines CNN. Same title for the Wall Street Journal and with variations for other US media such as the Washington Post (“Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, 95, is very ill: Francis asks for prayers”), Usa Today (“The health of Pope Benedict XVI it’s getting worse, says the Vatican”), Nbc News, Cbs News, New York Times.
In Belgium, the newspaper Le Soir dedicates the whole of page 2 to the conditions of the pope emeritus (“Le pape émérite Benoit XVI lutte pour sa vie”), while La Libre Belgique reports on its homepage that the Belgian bishops have asked the faithful to pray for Benedict XVI. In France, Le Figaro reports the news on its homepage, with the video of Pope Francis’ words, while Le Monde confines it to the internal pages. In Germany, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports on Benedict XVI’s conditions in a piece (“Great concern for the pope emeritus”), while Die Welt devotes several articles to the question.
In Spain, the news is highlighted among others by La Vanguardia, El Mundo and El Paìs, which dedicates the whole of page 5 to the story, but also by the Spanish-speaking Latin American media, such as Venezuela News, or the networks that broadcast in Spanish, such as Cnn, Dw, BBC and Euronews give space to the conditions of Benedict XVI. In Brazil, O Globo reports the news and the appeal of the bishop of Rio de Janeiro to pray for the health of the pope emeritus. In Argentina, El Clarin wonders about “what will happen if Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI dies”.