Chapter 1249 Disgraced
Rita's expression was sharp and deep.
“Dear viewers, I know that many of you do not like me. Yes, I, Rita Skeeter, have never been a good person. I fabricate stories, exaggerate, and manipulate facts.”
She spread her hands, looking like a scoundrel saying, "That's just how I am." "But there's a fundamental difference between me and Dolores."
She looked at old Umbridge apologetically, "Please forgive me, Mr. Umbridge, I just couldn't help but want to say something."
Before the other party could respond, she raised a finger and said, "First, I never pretend. I just want to dig up juicy stories, I want sales, I want people to look at me with a mixture of love and hate. I wear my intentions on my sleeve, and my malice is clearly priced."
“And her?” Rita scoffed.
"She wraps herself in a pink sugar coating, spouting 'for the children' and 'for order,' but everything she actually does reeks of control freak and sadism. It's a kind of hypocritical disgust, far more despicable than a 'real villain' like me."
Rita slowly raised her second finger. "Secondly, my harm is localized and temporary. My articles and reports will only cause a stir, and then people will be drawn to the next topic."
And Dolores? She oppressed professors, and even ordinary staff members were not spared. She attempted to systematically strangle the soul of a prestigious, thousand-year-old university through her power. Under her control, were the children truly happy?
Rita raised her third finger, then clenched it into a fist. "Third, and most importantly, I have a bottom line."
She leaned closer to the camera, allowing the audience to clearly see the genuine indignation on her face, "Yes, you heard me right, I, Rita Skeeter, have my bottom line! I will never deny the parents who gave me life and raised me because of my job!"
I will never be ashamed of my origins, nor will I use that as a reason to persecute people like my mother! This betrayal of one's own roots is the most despicable and disgusting aspect of human nature!
Rita took a deep breath and tried to compose herself. "I'm sorry, Mr. Umbridge, I think I went too far."
Old Umbridge choked up, shaking his head helplessly. "No, we know very well why Dolly...hates us. She has a Muggle mother, a brother who is a Squib, and I, as her father, can't offer her any help."
Rita took a silk handkerchief from her robe pocket and handed it to him. He carefully took the handkerchief and gently wiped the tears from his face.
“Mr. Umbridge, this has nothing to do with you. For example, I never feel inferior because of my bloodline. I love my parents. They gave me precious life. To deny them is to deny my existence.”
Old Umbridge looked affectionately into the camera and said, "Dolly, I hope that when you see this show, you will think of us. Your mother has aged a lot, and she has always wanted to see you again."
Rita's eyes reddened; this touching scene brought tears to her eyes involuntarily. "Dolores, if you're watching this program, I implore you to relinquish your power and stop hurting those who truly love you."
The second episode of "The Wizarding World Is Open Tonight" came to a close in this touching atmosphere, but the aftershocks it left behind swept through the entire wizarding world.
Touched, Hermione opened the comments section, which was filled with negative comments about Umbridge.
"A person who would abandon his own parents for power, a person who would turn his inferiority complex about his origins into cruel oppression of others, such a person was entrusted with an important task by Mr. Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic, and sent to Hogwarts."
"This disgusting pink toad suppresses professors, monitors students, and tries to turn the school into an orderly, ideologically unified camp. Does it remind you of a familiar bureaucracy?"
"Umbridge has become a different person since joining the Ministry of Magic. Is this 'loyal subject' who would betray even his own family currently on a top-secret mission? Minister Cornelius Fudge, you must give us an explanation."
Hermione glanced at the comments and found that, in addition to those, there were many well-intentioned comments urging Umbridge to wake up and stop making the same mistakes.
Rita, true to her reputation as a seasoned media professional, invited Umbridge as a guest and, after a series of emotionally charged moments, delivered a self-exposure-style whitewash, completely exposing her past and leaving the Ministry of Magic with no way to take action against her.
Umbridge was completely disgraced and labeled with negative tags such as "ungrateful," "psychopath," and "lackey of the Ministry of Magic."
The more profound impact was that parents and the public realized for the first time that the Ministry of Magic's intervention in Hogwarts might not be out of public interest, but rather a carefully planned power grab.
After watching the program, Mrs. Hopkins, who had previously written to stop her son from taking herbal medicine class, thoughtfully said to her husband, "Darling, maybe...maybe we're wrong. That Umbridge, she does seem...not quite normal. Professor Sprout, at least, seems healthy and sincere."
More parents are starting to discuss why the Ministry of Magic is so fixated on Hogwarts. What kind of mentality do their special education commissioners have? Are they genuinely trying to help the school, or do they have ulterior motives?
Fudge's reaction was predictable; he opened the comments section and soon found that the carefully chosen, enormous portrait had several more large holes in it.
The high-end velvet carpet was littered with fragments of ornaments from his desk; if the desk hadn't been so heavy, it probably would have been thrown out too.
Panting heavily, Fudge spent almost half an hour alone in his office venting his frustration.
The once magnificent room was smashed to pieces, and the portraits of the former ministers on the walls were teetering on the edge, with several already fallen down.
“Rita Skeeter…that damn bitch…”
Fudge, slumped in his chair, cursed weakly.
He now deeply regrets it; he should have shut down Wayne Media last week without hesitation, so as to avoid causing a whole host of problems.
Dubidubi is an international video platform, meaning that wizards not only in the UK can watch "The Wizarding World Is Open Tonight," but wizards all over the world can watch it.
The British Ministry of Magic is now in a very passive position. Rita's voluntary confession of her dirty secrets will make the audience think she is very "honest". Mere rumors are no longer enough to take her down, and she must be given a bigger crime.
Fudge became increasingly frustrated and punched the table several times until he broke his skin and bled before he stopped.
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