Synod Marketing: Perception is Everything

I'm a little taken aback by people I admire acting like the Relatio's problems are no big deal because the document has no authority and changes nothing in Church doctrine. Well, orthodox Catholics know that, but, do most people reading the press reports? What does the average person picking up the Washington Post or the Boston Globe or reading the Huffington Post think is happening in Rome? They certainly are NOT interpreting the results the same way orthodox Catholic are. Even as I write this the D.C. FM station is reporting that the Catholic Church is "undergoing a transformation."

What exactly is going on?