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Vatican City - Thursday, 8 May 2025, at 11:50 a.m., the cardinal electors gathered in the Sistine Chapel burned the ballots and the results of the two morning votes of the Conclave. These marked the second and third ballots since the Conclave began, following the initial vote held yesterday evening around 7:45 p.m., which was followed at 9 p.m. by a first black smoke. Today’s outcome was identical: black smoke, no Pope.
The day had begun with the concelebration of Holy Mass by the cardinal electors. Then, in silence and under tight security, they made their way to the Sistine Chapel—some on foot, others by minibus—where they prayed the Midday Hour before proceeding to the first vote of the day, which ended without reaching the necessary quorum of 89 votes. The second ballot concluded at 11:50 a.m. Afterwards, the cardinals returned to Casa Santa Marta, divided between the two buildings (new and old), and then had lunch together. As is well known, two stoves operate in the Sistine Chapel: one is used to burn the ballots and notes (which produces no smoke), and the other—fitted with a dedicated system—is used for the smoke visible to the world. The system was updated in recent conclaves precisely to avoid colour ambiguity. When white smoke appears, it must be abundant and unequivocal.
Tornielli’s Team and Their Blunders
At 11:51 a.m., the black smoke was officially announced. But at 11:59 a.m., the Vatican News X account suddenly posted: “11:59 White smoke.” For a few minutes, the world held its breath. Too bad it was all fake. What had been mistaken for a new white smoke was simply the tail end of the dissolving black smoke. A serious error, especially given the sensitivity of the moment and the global attention focused on the Sistine Chapel chimney. But more than a mere technical glitch, the episode casts a (black) light on the chronic improvisation of Vatican communications. The team led by Andrea Tornielli once again proves itself utterly inadequate—not only in managing the flow of information, but also in grasping the basic workings of ecclesial dynamics and curial rituals. And this was not the only misstep. Already last night, the frantic anticipation for the 7 p.m. smoke confused the international press, while in reality, as scheduled (but not communicated), the cardinals were attending a meditation by Cardinal Raniero Cantalamessa, which lasted longer than expected. Only afterwards was the first vote held. But no one—not even the Director of the Press Office, Matteo Bruni—thought to inform journalists that the evening would unfold quite differently from the subsequent days.
Meritocracy: What a Horror!
The communication management of this Conclave has become a faithful reflection of a system that, for years, has abandoned competence in favour of uncritical loyalty. In a recent address, Antonio Spadaro—one of the most omnipresent faces of the outgoing pontificate—proudly declared that Pope Francis had fought against meritocracy. Nothing could be truer: Spadaro and Tornielli are its embodiment. Were meritocracy truly in charge of the Vatican, they might today be tending a vegetable garden—not overseeing the communication of a Conclave. The problem is not just incompetence: it is the systemic promotion of mediocrity, the normalisation of approximation, the institutionalisation of slapdash work. This is nothing new, but the 2025 Conclave is making it glaringly evident—minute by minute, smoke after smoke. And as we wait for genuine white smoke to finally emerge from the chimney, we are left with the lingering suspicion that the real smoke, these past years, has been in the eyes of those who chose to believe that evangelical simplicity was equivalent to amateurism.
E.C.
Silere non possum