ABSTRACT
The new papal media strategy oscillates between Church Reform and tradition, modern progress and Renaissance nostalgia. Emphasizing tradition is crucial for an elected ruler, because he needs to constantly prove himself worthy in the eyes of the public. Reform, therefore, occurs in waves, and sometimes circles back to previous norms. As the analysis of papal visual propaganda during and after the Council of Trent has illustrated, Church Reform is a time-consuming process: it occurs over several decades. In addition, each individual papacy situates itself in yet another field of tension, as the new ruler tries to establish and distinguish himself among a dynasty of papal rulers. Where beneficial, popes strive to inscribe themselves within a continuity of a papal dynasty. Mythology, visual references to paganism and personal and nepotistic self-aggrandization were deemed problematic when not carefully reframed in the sense of Tridentine Reform.
