Vatican: Nearly one million copies of Light of the World already sold
L 'Osservatore RomanoLight of the World announced January 19 last that sales of all worldwide editions of , the book of interviews between Benedict XVI and German journalist Peter Seewald, are about to reach one million copies just two months after its release. 200,000 copies of the German edition, 100,000 of the English edition, and 80,000 of the French edition have been sold. The first 50,000 copies in Italian, published by Libreria Editrice Vaticana (LEV), were immediately sold and 50,000 more were ordered during the first days following the initial distribution on November 24, 2010. "By calculating approximately the twenty editions in different languages, the total approaches a million copies," predicts the Vatican newspaper which drummed up interest in the book’s anticipated publication by releasing controversial excerpts from the work (see DICI No. 226 and No. 227) –including a highly publicized sentence by the pope on condom use. While regretting that "some, as is often the case, wanted to amplify a very small part of the overall message," Father Giuseppe Costa, director of LEV, confessed, in the January 19, 2011 edition of L'Osservatore Romano, that "the announcements and expectations were useful because they helped to attract the attention of public opinion to the book. "- This is what one calls in plain terms media hype or, more simplistically, a publicity stunt!
(Sources : apic/Imedia – DICI n°230 du 19/02/11)
You can also read :
Note on the remarks of Benedict XVI concerning condom use
The media campaign surrounding Light of the World by Benedict XVI
The pope’s remarks about condoms: the intention and the context
