Discuss the Power of the Media in the Hunger Games. How Does It Manipulate the Truth in Order to Control Its Citizens?

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she is uncertain about her feelings towards Peeta and whether they are genuine, Katniss knows that the romance will help her become more powerful. She is proven correct as their “love story” ultimately keeps them alive.

As Katniss learns that the media can be used to her advantage, she uses it to destroy the false idea that the government have brainwashed the people into believing and to take back power, for herself and the Districts. Throughout The Games, the Capitol aims to dehumanize the tributes, turning them into bloodthirsty animals.

They arrive at the opening ceremonies in “chariots pulled by four teams of horses,” as if they are Roman gladiators, ready to fight to the death. Katniss does not allow the Gamemakers to destroy her humanity and turn her into a cruel killer. This helps Katniss gain respect from other Districts. This is seen when Katniss’ ally Rue was killed, she honoured her death by placing flowers over her body and singing to Rue in her final moments. Rue became human to Katniss and not simply a competitor. This act defies the Capitol and challenges the idea that Rue’s death was just entertainment for an audience. Instead of dividing the Districts, as intended by the Capitol, it reminded them of their similarities. It reminded the audience of the fact that the real enemy was the government who pitted their friends and family against one another. Rue’s death further inspires Katniss to fight against the Capitol and to defeat them any way she can. The media displays most of this act before it was cut short, on every television throughout Panem, instilling hope throughout the Districts that Katniss may the leader they need to rise up against the Capitol.

By the end of the novel Katniss has figured out how to use reality television to her advantage and challenges the power of the Capitol. The end scene in the arena shows Katniss and Peeta defying the Capitol and making their own rules by attempting a double suicide, so there would be no victor. In these few moments, Katniss and Peeta held the Capitol at their mercy, forcing the Capitol to change the rules. If the Gamemakers allowed the both tributes die, there would be no victor and the viewers would be outraged. Katniss uses the love story which the Capitol help develop against them and ultimately to manipulate the Capitol into keeping both her and Peeta alive. Before they enter the arena, Peeta says,

“I want to die as myself... I don’t want them to change me in there. Turn me into some monster that I’m not.”

In the final scene, both Peeta and Katniss use the media to defy the Capitol, showing that they are not just a piece in the Capitol’s game and that they have had the strength to hold on to their humanity and integrity.

The media plays a large role in the novel, ‘The Hunger Games.’ It aids the Capitol in manipulating the Districts using propaganda to make the people in its districts feel weak and helpless. Censorship is also used to maintain power by the manipulation of the truth dividing the districts and ensuring there is no rebellion against their totalitarian rule. Reality television is used to broadcast the Hunger Games to further separate the Districts and to manipulate them into believing the Capitols total control. However Katniss uses this form of media to create her own version of the truth, which enables her to gain more power until she challenges the government, which saves her life. This further proves that the media is an important tool used in many ways throughout the novel, ‘The Hunger Games’.