If you’re a fan of the Harry Potter series, it’s probably a no-brainer that Harry Potter is the protagonist, and Lord Voldemort is the villain. There are, however, witches and wizards in in the fantastical world who are not so nice and have their own tricks up their sleeves. One of these malicious witches, is none other than the scribbling scribe, Rita Skeeter. Skeeter makes her debut in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire during the Tri-Wizard Tournament and slanders Harry and others in some rather infuriating ways. She is a self-proclaimed journalist, who writes in a very biased manner and tends to bring out the worst in her subjects, rather than the best in them.
Right from the get-go, it is clear that what Skeeter is after, is not the truth…rather, it is anything that would make a compelling and exciting story. She uses a quick quotes quill, which is a pen that seems to have a mind of its own, as it writes without her needing to hold it, and zooms across the paper at lightning speed. During the first interview between Rita Skeeter and Harry, Skeeter writes that Harry’s “eyes are glistening with the ghosts of his past.” During the interview, it is clear that she is trying to present Harry as a sad, pitiful orphan, which is the last thing that Harry wants. He calls her out for making up things that he never said, but she shrugs him off and continues to write lies about him. Hermione is infuriated by Skeeter’s blatant lies and ability to try to convince readers that Harry is evil and stops at nothing to catch her in the act and take away her power.
Later on in the series, Hermione yells at Skeeter for outing Hagrid as a half-giant and writing some really horrible things about him. She makes him sound like he is a dangerous oaf, when in reality, he is gentle and kind and wouldn’t hurt a fly. When Hermione yells at Skeeter, the reporter gets back at her by writing a fierce article stating that Hermione is toying with two different young men…Harry and Viktor Krum. This results in Hermione receiving hate mail and being ostracized by her peers. At this point, it is clear that Harry, Hermione and Ron are against this so called “reporter.” She is vile, and a sneak and gets her scoops, as Hermione later discovers, by transforming into a beetle and perching herself on windowsills to eavesdrop.
Skeeter stops at nothing to try to portray Harry as a victim with a horrible past, and when Harry finally puts his foot down, she writes a rather nasty piece claiming that Harry is dangerous, unbalanced and a threat to others. She makes implications that he is lying about his scar hurting in order to get attention. According to Draco Malfoy, Harry’s “made friends with werewolves and giants too. We think he’d do anything for a bit of power.” (31.48) Skeeter agrees with him and continues to slander Harry in her articles. Hermione has had enough and is determined to put an end to her horrible ways. At the end of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Hermione discovers that she is an Animagus, someone who can take the shape of an animal at their choosing. Individuals who possess this ability are supposed to register with the Ministry of Magic, yet Hermione discovers that she has not done so.
Skeeter transforms into a beetle and because she is small, and easily ignored, she is able to spy on other people’s conversations and publish horrible things about them. That’s how she found out the intimate details of Hermione’s relationship with Viktor Krum and how she uncovered the details of Harry’s scar causing him pain during Divination class. Hermione has had enough yet is willing to make a deal with Skeeter. In exchange for staying quiet about being an unregistered Animagus, Skeeter has to promise not to publish any lies about anybody for an entire year. Hermione would lie to “see if she can’t break the habit of writing horrible lies about people.” (37.107) Even though she promises to behave, it isn’t in her nature to stay quiet. Skeeter thrives off of making up rumors and lies about others and publishing them for the world to see. So, while Skeeter may not use the Cruciatious Curse on her enemies, she is still able to elicit great pain and suffering in her victims. Her lies are foul, and her intent is cruel. She aims to harm others through her publications and doesn’t care if she upsets others, as long as she gets a hot story and a positive reaction from her readers. She is villainous though she does not physically harm others. Her words are as pointy as a knife and pierce through the skin of all she degrades through her reporting. She may not be Lord Voldemort, but she is as heartless…and that makes her just as horrible as him.
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