About Vatican Access
Vatican Access is a Catholic News Service podcast hosted by Robert Duncan, featuring interviews and analysis on the people, decisions, and forces shaping the Catholic Church worldwide.
Subscribers receive new episodes, full transcripts, and curated highlights from leading Vatican insiders and Church experts.
Have a guest suggestion or question for the show? Write to us at info(at)vaticanaccess.com.
About Catholic News Service
Catholic News Service is the Rome-based news agency of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Catholic News Service has a rich history of journalistic professionalism unmatched in the Catholic world. That tradition continues today, even as CNS has evolved to meet the changing realities of the global Church and the media landscape.
CNS was founded by the U.S. bishops in 1920, but it was clear from the start that the bishops wanted it to be an authentic news agency. The founding director was Justin McGrath, a veteran journalist and managing editor of the San Francisco Examiner who also had worked at The New York Times and other leading newspapers and was Washington bureau chief of the Hearst papers.
Bishop Philip R. McDevitt of Harrisburg, Pa., chairman of the bishops’ press department, summarized the news service’s philosophy in 1927. He said its main purpose was to provide Catholic newspaper editors with “full and accurate reports of happenings of interest to Catholics.”
That commitment to accuracy, professionalism, and service to the Church remains the foundation of CNS today.
In 2022, the U.S. bishops concluded the operations of the domestic news service based in Washington, D.C., marking a significant moment in CNS history. At the same time, the CNS presence in Rome continued and has taken on renewed importance.
Today, Catholic News Service is centered in Rome at the heart of the universal Church, serving as a bridge between the ministry of the Holy Father and the work of the Vatican and the Church in the United States. It connects the life of the Apostolic See with dioceses, Catholic media, institutions, and faithful across the United States.
From papal liturgies and apostolic journeys to major Vatican initiatives and global Church developments, CNS provides clear, contextualized, and faithful reporting that helps the U.S. Church understand the mission and teaching of the pope within the life of the wider Church.
In a rapidly changing media environment, CNS remains committed to the standards that have defined it for more than a century: authoritative, Catholic, and professional journalism. While its structure has evolved, its mission endures — to inform, to connect, and to serve the Church.
