CHIANG MAI (LiCAS News): The Catholic Church in Thailand urged Christians and media practitioners to defend human dignity, personal identity, and authentic relationships as artificial intelligence and synthetic media increasingly reshape communication.
The appeal was made during the country’s observance of the World Day of Social Communications at the Sacred Heart of Jesus Cathedral in Chiang Mai on August 2.
Centred on the theme, “Preserving Human Voices and Faces,” the observance featured a special Sunday Mass followed by an educational media seminar. While dioceses worldwide observe World Communications Day on the Sunday before Pentecost, the Church in Thailand traditionally marks the occasion on the first Sunday of August.
Jointly organised by the Media Office of the Diocese of Chiang Mai and Catholic Social Communications Thailand, or CSCT, the event brought together members of the faithful and media practitioners to examine the ethical challenges posed by rapid technological changes.
No matter how advanced communication tools become, humans must remain central, and technology should serve humanity, not place humans under the control of technology,
Bishop Suphot
The day’s activities included a panel discussion titled “Challenges and Advancements in Media and Human Confrontation.”
The panel brought together Bishop Peter Suphot Roeksujarit, who was newly ordained on July 29 and has a background in social communications, and Father Joseph Anucha Chaiyadej, executive director of CSCT.
“No matter how advanced communication tools become, humans must remain central, and technology should serve humanity, not place humans under the control of technology,” Bishop Suphot said.
The bishop said the rapid growth of AI and synthetic media should lead people to value what technology cannot truly replicate, including physical presence, vocal nuance, innate creativity, and authentic face-to-face communion.
He said that communication must remain an instrument for truth, hope, peace, unity, and love.
His remarks reflected the message of Pope Leo XIV for the 60th World Day of Social Communications, which called on the global community to recognise human “faces and voices” as expressions of personal identity and dignity in an age of deepfakes and automated interaction.
This year’s 60th World Day did not focus only on media professionals, but served as an invitation to all Christians to recognise that ‘everyone is a communicator’ through words, actions, social media, and the way we listen to and interact with those around us
Father Anucha
Father Anucha warned that data saturation and AI-generated content could blur the line between reality and fabrication.
“Media users therefore need the ability to think critically, analyse, verify sources, and exercise judgment before believing or sharing information,” he said.
He said genuine communication goes beyond the transmission of information and should involve building relationships, active listening, and recognising the dignity of others.
“This year’s 60th World Day did not focus only on media professionals, but served as an invitation to all Christians to recognise that ‘everyone is a communicator’ through words, actions, social media, and the way we listen to and interact with those around us,” he said.
Father Anucha added that progress in communication should be measured not by technological reach, but by how deeply technology helps people connect and grow in shared humanity.
