study sessions: Mass Media as instruments for evangelization and human development 1977: Namur: The theme of the Assembly's study sessions: The needs of our society and the response of mass media 1980: Manilla: The theme of the Assembly's study sessions: The role of Unda in a World of Media 1983: Nairobi: World Congress Unda with the common Unda–OCIC international study days on Communication and human promotion, the challenges today – with common studydays with Unda and the keynote speech by Sean MacBride 1987: Quito: World Congress Unda with the common Unda–OCIC international study days on culture, media, and Gospel Values 1990: Bangkok: World Congress of Unda with the common Udna–OCIC international study days on the new Media age and its challenge 1994: Prague: World Congress of Unda the common Unda–OCIC international study days on media and human dignity 1998: Montréal: World Congress of Unda with the common Unda–OCIC international study days on creativity in the media sphere: spiritual opportunity 2001: Rome: Concluded with the merger with OCIC into SIGNIS. Catholics and the press In the 19th century, Catholic newspapers and magazines were founded in countries across the world. The first Catholic diocesan paper in the US, for example, was The Catholic Miscellany launched in Charleston, South Carolina, in 1822. In 1842, the first Catholic newspaper Le Propagateur Catholique in New Orleans, Louisiana was published in French. Before 1914, there were Catholic journalist associations in the United States (CPA). Other publications were founded by religious orders and by lay Catholics with a desire to give a voice to the Church in the public sphere. Notable examples are The Tablet launched in Britain in 1840 by Frederick Lucas, a convert to Catholicism, The Universe launched in Britain in 1860 by Archibald Dunn, and the Catholic Press, an Australian newspaper. In Sri Lanka, the layman John Fernando founded the Gnanartha Pradeepaya, a Sinhala-language Catholic weekly, as a four-page broadsheet of Church news and papal speeches in 1865. In 1886, more than two decades after it started, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Colombo became the weekly's official owner. It is one of the oldest Catholic newspapers in Asia. The Assumptionists launched La Croix as a daily newspaper in France in 1883. In 1910, the First Congress for Brazilian Catholic Journalists found a place and the Catholic national press agency O Centro de Boa Imprensa, which aim was to send quality articles to the many