'Love my woke pope': Why Leo's first encyclical went viral and how it speaks to his papal approach
- His new encyclical calling for stronger AI regulation exploded online, spawning memes and viral reactions from younger audiences.
- Leo’s pop-culture moves — quoting Gandalf, wearing Nikes, doing viral hand gestures and posing with baseball gear — have made him unusually relatable.
- He’s openly engaging tech and Hollywood (and even inspired people to livestream margarita-fueled read-throughs of the encyclical), so he’s become a frequent topic of light, shareable conversation.