Pope Leo XIV has appointed Maria Montserrat Alvarado as Prefect of the Dicastery for Communication, effective November 1, 2026. She will succeed Paolo Ruffini, who turns 70 in October. Alvarado currently serves as President and Chief Operating Officer of EWTN News. With this appointment, she becomes the first non-religious woman to lead a dicastery of the Holy See. The move continues the Curia reform initiated by Pope Francis, which has placed lay men and women in leadership roles within the universal Church.
Born in Mexico City, Alvarado holds degrees from Florida International University and George Washington University. From 2009 to 2023, she held leadership roles at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, working on initiatives defending religious freedom and promoting human dignity. Since 2023, she has led EWTN News, the news division of the Eternal Word Television Network. In that role she oversaw international media platforms producing content in seven languages across television, radio, print, digital, and social media.
Established by Pope Francis on June 27, 2015, the Dicastery for Communication oversees the Holy See’s media systems. These include Vatican News, Vatican Radio, L’Osservatore Romano, Vatican Media, the Holy See Press Office, the Vatican publishing house, the Vatican Printing Press, and the Filmoteca Vaticana. Beyond operational and technological work, the Dicastery develops the theological and pastoral aspects of the Church’s communication. Ruffini was appointed by Pope Francis in 2018 as the first lay prefect of a Curia dicastery.
In a statement after the announcement, Alvarado said: “While this appointment was unexpected, I receive it with a sincere desire to serve the Holy Father as he begins his pontificate. And I am grateful to Paolo Ruffini for his leadership throughout the last years and look forward to continuing, in friendship and hope, the important work of strengthening the dicastery so it may continue to serve the Church in Rome and everywhere to communicate Christ to the world.” Ruffini sent a letter to Dicastery staff noting the need to stay “attuned to the rapidly changing world of communication.” He wrote: “From the moment we were born as an institution, our guiding star has been and remains this: never to stop, to pass the baton while continuing to run, to be present in the here and now… I have entered the final lap of the race, before the moment when—in the long journey that is our working life—having reached the age of 70, the age set for retirement, I will pass the baton to Montserrat Alvarado as the next prefect. We know each other well. And in the coming months, we will work closely together, in the spirit of communion that unites us in the Church.”
He added: “I am grateful to the big family of Dicastery for the journey we have taken together over these eight years. We are beginning now the process over the coming months for a smooth transition in order to help the Dicastery continue to grow in service to the Holy Father and in its mission of serving in a spirit of unity and openness.” Michael P. Warsaw, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of EWTN, said Alvarado had earned “the trust and respect of everyone privileged to work alongside her.” He added: “We offer her our prayers, our encouragement, and the full support of the EWTN family as she begins this important mission in service to Pope Leo XIV and his pontificate.”