Chronic Murmuring

The Pope's Statement

Peggy Noonan explores whether the Pope did or did not say "It is as it was." It's difficult to believe the co-producers fabricated that endorsement, since at least three different media outlets (of which, Noonan was the only one who used the co-producer as a source; the others used an anonymous Vatican official) reported it on the same day. The quote was fact-checked numerously - with the translator who relayed the quote (spoken by the Archbishop) to the co-producer (he said the statement was true), to others in the Vatican - and it seems clear that the statement attributed to the Pope was passed onto the co-producer by the Archbishop. That event, at least, seems to have happened. Noonan relays in the above article her careful checking of the sources, as well as the other media outlets attempt to check the sources, as well as noting that the NYTimes in a piece critical of the film and its marketing also verified that the Archbishop did make the statement. Yet, now the Vatican is actually saying that the statement was never said, and is implying that the co-producer fabricated the entire story. It sounds very strange.