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"Our plan is to launch an Airtime Assault. To make a series of what we call propos—which is short for 'propaganda spots'—featuring you, and broadcast them to the entire population of Panem."
Plutarch Heavensbee explaining his intention with propos[src]
Mockingjay1-movie-screencaps

One of the rebel propos aired in the districts.

Propaganda spots, more commonly known as propos, were televised materials used to promote the rebel cause as part of the Second Rebellion's Airtime Assault.[1] The term "propo" was used primarily to describe rebel propaganda, but the Capitol created their own materials throughout the war as well.

Development[]

As the Mockingjay, Katniss Everdeen was the star of the rebels' propaganda initiative. An entire team was dedicated to making her over, writing her speeches, and orchestrating her appearances. Plutarch Heavensbee was a key member of that team, likely drawing on his experience as a Gamemaker to market the revolution through her. The rebels also intended to use Finnick Odair in propos, though they couldn't initially due to his condition after the Quarter Quell.[2]

Katniss behind the scenes of this first failed propo with Effie Trinket in Mockingjay - Part 1

Katniss behind the scenes of this first failed propo with Effie Trinket in Mockingjay - Part 1

Katniss's first scripted test propo was regarded as a failure and never went past filming.[3] During a brainstorming session held by Haymitch Abernathy, District 13's President Alma Coin agreed to send Katniss out into the field with a camera crew to draw a more authentic and spontaneous performance out of her.[4] The results from this were so promising that immediate plans were made to produce more,[5] and propos were created all the way through to the end of the war.

According to Plutarch, Beetee Latier "essentially redesigned the underground network that transmits all the programming",[1] so he was in charge of getting the propos to air across the districts,[5] and later, in the Capitol.[6]

Notable propos[]

Rebel propos[]

First failed propo[]

"People of Panem, we fight, we dare, we end our hunger for justice!"
—Katniss Everdeen[src]

The first propo that Katniss attempted to film was just a single slogan, which was meant to be edited into a short test propo to show President Coin. However, Katniss thought the line was ridiculous so she was unable to deliver it convincingly, and nobody liked the way it turned out.[3]

Katniss in District 8 in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1

Katniss in District 8 in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1

"If we burn, you burn with us"[]

"I want to tell the rebels that I am alive. That I'm right here in District Eight, where the Capitol has just bombed a hospital full of unarmed men, women, and children. There will be no survivors. I want to tell people that if you think for second that the Capitol will treat us fairly if there's a cease-fire, you're deluding yourself. Because you know who they are and what they do. This is what they do! And we must fight back! President Snow says he's sending us a message? Well, I have one for him. You can torture us and bomb us and burn our districts to the ground, but do you see that? Fire is catching! And if we burn, you burn with us!"
—Katniss Everdeen[src]

About a month into the war, District 8 was heavily bombed one morning, and Katniss, Gale, Boggs, Cressida, and other District 13 citizens and camera crews were sent to film a propo. Katniss met injured rebel soldiers and civilians in the field hospital, many of whom were excited to see her. However, after exiting, a second wave of Capitol bombers came in to kill the patients and medics inside. Katniss and Gale took down the hovercraft with explosive arrows, utilizing the same technique they used to hunt geese. Then Katniss filmed a stirring propo in front of the burning wreckage.[7]

This was the first spot to be broadcast, and it was rerun at least seventeen times. It played in every district, although Beetee wasn't able to get through to the Capitol.[5]

Subsequent propos[]

The team behind the Airtime Assault planned to make two more propos using footage from the day of the hospital bombing. The first was under the theme "Because you know who they are and what they do". This one, put together by Cressida's assistant Messalla, was shown later that evening on the television. It focused on Katniss interacting with the patients— especially children— and then the bombing and its aftermath. Katniss found it difficult to watch, burying her face into her pillow when the bombs came down. She only looked back up for a brief clip of herself at the end, once everyone was dead.[5]

The second spot was themed under "Fire is catching". It was to be a highlight reel of "Katniss's best moments intercut with scenes of rebel uprisings and war footage".[5]


"We Remember"[]

Fulvia Cardew had come up with the idea to run a series of propos narrated by Finnick that paid tribute to the memory of past tributes from each of the districts, the theme being "We Remember." It was an effort to reach out to any people in the districts who were still unwilling to join the rebellion.[5] According to Plutarch, Finnick did very well with these, and Cressida said they were "painful to watch" because Finnick had "[known] so many of them personally".[6]

Beetee managed to break through the Capitol's feed in the middle of a Capitol propo with Peeta Mellark. He was able to play five- to ten-second clips from the "We Remember" spots while Capitol technicians attempted to regain control over the broadcast.[6]

Wreckage of District 12[]

Katniss and Gale went with a film crew to document the ruins of District 12. Katniss, overcome with emotion, was unable to perform, so Gale recounted the bombing and the mistreatment they'd faced from Peacekeepers in the months leading up to it. At the request of Pollux, Katniss later sang "The Hanging Tree" at the lake,[6] though this was never aired.[8]

Film adaptation[]

In Mockingjay - Part 1, the footage of Katniss singing was actually aired, though with a minor alteration to the lyrics: Plutarch had the line "necklace of rope" altered to sound like "necklace of hope". People in the districts then picked it up as a protest song.[9]


President Snow, exposed[]

One propo was used as a distraction during the Infiltration of the Capitol. Katniss told the story of how she met Peeta and their exchange with the bread, and she declared her freedom from President Snow. That line prompted Plutarch to pull Finnick aside, presumably proposing that he declare his own freedom from Snow. Although Haymitch jumped in to argue against it, Finnick agreed to film the propo.[10]

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Finnick Odair filming his exposé.

He revealed that President Snow had been sex trafficking him since the age of sixteen, and he exposed many secrets he had collected over the years from his high-profile Capitol clients. This included "strange sexual appetites, betrayals of the heart, bottomless greed, and bloody power plays". Some of his most salacious accusations were of "incest, back-stabbing, blackmail, and arson".[10]

Finnick then expounded President Snow's offenses: he had ascended to power young by poisoning enemies and allies who could pose a threat to him. Snow often drank from the same poisoned glass to deflect suspicion, but although antidotes saved his life, he was left with mouth sores that wouldn't heal. He wore roses to cover up the persistent stench of blood.[10]


Bombing of the Nut[]

After the bombing of the Nut, Haymitch was going to feed Katniss a speech line by line that would be televised in order to get District 2 to surrender to the rebels. However, she jumped in to save the life of a victim of the bombing, and she ended up being held at gunpoint herself. She gave a spontaneous speech, albeit with some prompting from Haymitch, but then she was shot[8] by someone farther back in the crowd.[11]

Screen Shot 2015-06-09 at 4.13

Finnick and Annie's wedding in District 13's underground compound in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2.

Finnick and Annie's wedding[]

Another propo documented the marriage of Finnick Odair and Annie Cresta, which was held in District 13. Plutarch spent a lot of time and effort haggling over the details with Coin. It was created both for simple entertainment and to boost morale.[11]

Military training[]

Katniss, Peeta, Finnick, Gale, and Johanna Mason were all filmed as they trained in preparation for the Battle of the Capitol. Propos of Finnick and Gale in particular were doing well.[12]

Squad 451[]

Main article: Squad 451

Squad 451 was an elite unit of sharpshooters formed to film propos during the Battle of the Capitol. They were also known as the Star Squad.[12] On their fourth morning in the Capitol, Leeg 2 was killed when she hit a mislabeled pod, which shot metal darts into her brain.[12]

Their most notable propo was filmed on their seventh day in the Capitol. That afternoon, the whole squad was needed to stage a more complicated propo that included a special block set aside for filming that had a few active pods. However, the squad wasn't able to take the acting seriously, and after admonishing them, their commander Boggs mistakenly stepped on a pod, blowing off his legs.[13] This set off a chain of events that, over the next few days, would end with a total of nine deaths: seven soldiers (including Leeg 2) and two members of the film crew.[14]

False death declaration[]
Coin: "Dead or alive, Katniss Everdeen will remain the face of this rebellion. If you ever waver in your resolve, think of the Mockingjay, and in her you will find the strength you need to rid Panem of its oppressors."
Katniss: "I had no idea I meant so much to her."
Mockingjay, Chapter 21

At one point, the squad was all prematurely declared dead by the Capitol. This resulted in an address from President Snow, but rebels broke in with their own message. President Coin addressed the nation at large for the first time as the head of the rebellion, eulogized Katniss, and encouraged the rebels to keep fighting in her name. This was followed by a "heavily doctored photo" of Katniss "looking beautiful and fierce with a bunch of flames flickering behind [her]", unaccompanied by any words or slogans. The image of her face was all they needed by then.[15]


Capitol propaganda[]

Peeta's interviews[]

One of Peeta's propos for the Capitol.

One of Peeta's propos for the Capitol.

While he was imprisoned in the Capitol, Peeta was forced to film three separate interviews in the President's mansion, which documented his declining physical and mental condition. His first propo was a sit-down interview with Caesar Flickerman— presumably filmed soon after the 75th Hunger Games— who asked Peeta about the chaotic events that unfolded at the end of the Quell. Peeta then called for a ceasefire. This propo wouldn't be aired for several weeks.[16]

Peeta's second interview with Caesar was aired four or five days after the first, just after the rebels' "if we burn, you burn with us" spot. Caesar asked Peeta about rumors that Katniss was filming propos for the districts, and Peeta aggressively responded that they were using her. When asked if he had anything to tell Katniss, he told her to think for herself, evaluate whether she trusted the people she was working with, and if she didn't know what was going on, to find out.[5]

Peeta, visibly in terrible condition, in his third propo.

Peeta, visibly in terrible condition, in his third and final Capitol propo.

Unlike the previous two, Peeta's third propo was aired live. He was made to recount war damage allegedly perpetrated by rebels: a broken dam in District 7, a derailed train leaking toxic waste, a granary collapsed after a fire, and the bombing of a water purification plant. District 13 was able to break into the broadcast with their own "We Remember" propos.[6]

After wresting control back from the rebels, President Snow asked Peeta if he had any "parting thoughts" for Katniss, and Peeta revealed that the Capitol was planning to bomb District 13. After that, he was knocked to the floor and beaten, and the footage cut out.[6]

President Snow's speeches[]

In Mockingjay - Part 1, Egeria wrote a speech that was later given by President Snow on television. He declared that any association with the mockingjay symbol would be punishable by death; to prove it, Peacekeepers staged live executions before crowds in District 8 and District 11 at the same instant.[9]

When the members of Squad 451 were all mistakenly declared dead, President Snow appeared on television from his desk, commending Peacekeepers for ridding the nation of the Mockingjay. He derided Katniss as a "poor, unstable girl with a small talent with a bow and arrow". Then, through his doubt in her, he expressed that the rebels had "no real leader among them". This was interrupted by a rebel broadcast from 13, after which Snow declared that when they recovered Katniss's body, the rebels would see her for what she truly was: "A dead girl who could save no one, not even herself".[15]

Notable people[]

Rebels[]

Cast[]

  • Katniss Everdeen
  • Finnick Odair
  • Gale Hawthorne
  • Peeta Mellark
  • Other members of Squad 451

Crew[]

Management[]

  • District 13 leaders and military officials[2]
  • President Alma Coin[2]
  • Plutarch Heavensbee[2]
  • Fulvia Cardew - Plutarch's assistant[2]
  • Haymitch Abernathy[4]
  • Effie Trinket (films only)[9]

The Capitol[]

  • President Snow[6]
  • Peeta Mellark[16]
  • Caesar Flickerman - interviewer[16]
  • Egeria - speech writer (films only)[9]

Trivia[]

  • Beetee is the only named member of the crew behind the Airtime Assault who was not from the Capitol. He came from District 3.
  • During Haymitch's brainstorming session after the failed test propo, he brought Dalton, Leevy, and Greasy Sae in to consult, though they were otherwise not involved in the Airtime Assault.[4]
    • Dalton made the last comment at that meeting, saying to wash Katniss's face of makeup: "She's still a girl and you made her look thirty-five. Feels wrong. Like something the Capitol would do."[4] A variation of this line was given to Boggs in the film adaptation.[9]
  • In the Mockingjay films, the character of Fulvia was replaced with Effie.[9]
    • On this matter, director Francis Lawrence said, "How can anybody replace Elizabeth Banks as Effie Trinket in these movies? When Suzanne Collins saw Catching Fire, she called and one of the first things she said was, ‘There’s no way Effie Trinket cannot be in the Mockingjay films.’ Effie brings such warmth and fun and levity to these dark stories. She’s the fish out of water in this one and fans will love how she has adapted to the world of District 13."[17]

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Mockingjay, Chapter 3
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Mockingjay, Chapter 1
  3. 3.0 3.1 Mockingjay, Chapter 5
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Mockingjay, Chapter 6
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 Mockingjay, Chapter 8
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 Mockingjay, Chapter 9
  7. Mockingjay, Chapter 7
  8. 8.0 8.1 Mockingjay, Chapter 15
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1
  10. 10.0 10.1 10.2 Mockingjay, Chapter 12
  11. 11.0 11.1 Mockingjay, Chapter 16
  12. 12.0 12.1 12.2 Mockingjay, Chapter 18
  13. Mockingjay, Chapter 19
  14. Mockingjay, Chapter 22
  15. 15.0 15.1 Mockingjay, Chapter 21
  16. 16.0 16.1 16.2 Mockingjay, Chapter 2
  17. https://www.vulture.com/2014/08/why-is-effie-trinket-in-the-mockingjay-posters.html
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