Hogwarts: This professor is too Muggle.

Chapter 173 Journalism and Communication
As evening approached, the clouds were thick.

The Christmas holidays are over, and the new school term arrives with the Hogwarts Express.

The students entered the school in Thestrals. As soon as they stepped into the hall, the sky darkened rapidly within minutes, becoming as thick as ink. The evening wind howled and whipped against the castle walls, but the hall remained brightly lit, with a cheerful atmosphere.

Hermione sat at the long table, holding a cup of hot pumpkin juice, sipping it slowly while glancing at her classmates.

The expressions of students who stayed on campus during the holidays and those who went home were completely different. The students who stayed on campus looked happy because they were reunited with their friends after a long separation; the students who went home for the holidays only returned to school today and were very envious of those who stayed on campus, asking about their school life during the holidays, their words and expressions revealing their envy.

A ghost floated by.

Not far away, Lavender sat at the long table, complaining incessantly: "I can't cast spells when I'm home on holiday, all my neighbors are just ordinary Muggles, and when I see the news in the newspaper, I can't even find anyone to talk to. Life at home is so boring..."

“So you called me 15 times on Boxing Day!” Parvati sounded somewhat distraught.

Such a dialogue, though not magical, brought the entire castle to life.

Hermione spent the entire holiday analyzing Slytherin's thoughts, the Basilisk's purpose, and pondering Professor Levent's ideas. This unanswerable contemplation felt so ethereal that she always had a sense of unreality, detached from reality. Her roommate's chattering made her feel at ease.

It wasn't just Lavender and Parvati who saw the news; other students also learned about it and chattered about the specifics of what happened.

"Slytherin secretly built the Chamber of Secrets and left behind a vicious basilisk! Good heavens! That basilisk has lived for a thousand years!" a young wizard exclaimed, his eyes wide with amazement.

An older student nearby explained, "Basilisks have a normal lifespan of nine hundred years, and they can also hibernate, which can slow down aging. If they continue to sleep, this basilisk might live for another thousand years."

"Do you think the Basilisk is still at school?" Ernie from Hufflepuff suddenly asked.

The surrounding students suddenly fell silent, and it took a moment before someone answered.

"That can't be right, that's too dangerous."

"The principal and professors would definitely not allow it."

"The news seems to say that they have entrusted the handling of magical creatures expert Newt Scamander."

"..."

Besides the Chamber of Secrets and the Basilisk, holiday life was also a hot topic. Those who stayed on campus envied those who could reunite with family and friends and travel. And the other junior wizards were also very envious of these people's freedom to use the common room.

All the faculty and staff of the school attended the dinner. Headmaster Dumbledore sat in the main seat at the head table, smiling kindly and looking at the students in the hall with loving eyes. Occasionally, when a young wizard made eye contact with him, he would wink mischievously, giving many students the strange feeling that the headmaster was paying attention to them.

Surrounding me were the dean and professors from various departments.

A glint of light flickered in the professors' eyes. They had already experienced the mirror that had been released a couple of days ago and keenly sensed that this medium was very special, but they couldn't quite put their finger on it.

They focused their attention on Professor Levent, hoping he could answer their questions.

Melvin was discussing the Shadow Mirror with Professor Flitwick: "The program is pre-produced and transmitted via Floo Network. The Shadow Mirror is just a receiving tool. This model is modeled after Muggle television. We hope it will become the television of the wizarding world, making information transmission more convenient and efficient, and enriching the entertainment options for wizards."

Flitwick didn't quite understand; he had only watched a few games on Three Broomsticks and used a telephoto lens for instructional recordings.

"The Shadow Mirror transmits images through the Floo Network. The Hogwarts fireplaces aren't usually connected to the Floo Network, which is a bit inconvenient, isn't it? How about we set up a few fireplaces that are connected to the Floo Network?"

Melvin shook his head slightly: "The current mirrors are mainly used for entertainment and leisure; students don't need them."

"It's currently used for entertainment and leisure, will this change in the future?"

Instead of answering directly, Melvin began to explain some Muggle studies: "Muggle scholars believe that the transmission and sharing of information is very important in the course of civilization's development, and have even developed a professional discipline to study related fields, called communication studies."

“In ancient Rome, Muggles began publishing announcements, including legal provisions, judgments, and recent important events, to make it easier for the public to read and understand. Around the 7th century AD, papermaking and printing techniques in the Eastern dynasties were gradually improved, and newspapers began to be printed. 70 years ago, Muggles began to use television to transmit information.”

"Muggle scholars believe that the media accelerates the flow of information, allowing knowledge, ideas, and even wealth and power to be passed on to more people."

If we look at it on a longer timescale, the magical world's production technology was ahead of its time for many centuries, and it should have given birth to a brilliant civilization. However, because the number of wizards is small, pure-blood wizards control most of the resources, and most of them are foolish and unaware of their own ignorance, stubborn and rigid, the magical world has not changed much for centuries.

Meanwhile, Muggle society developed rapidly, and in just two hundred years, the whole world had become completely different.

"..."

Flitwick nodded, seemingly understanding but not quite.

The other professors nearby seemed to be deep in thought.

Even Dumbledore turned his head and looked at Melvin's young and handsome face with a thoughtful expression.

The wizarding world lags behind the Muggle world—a truth many wizards are unwilling to admit. Magical civilization may have once been glorious, but since the enactment of the Act of Secrecy, Muggle civilization has left wizards far behind, racing towards the future like an express train.

Many wizards, including his old friend, saw through this cruel truth and attempted to bring about change.

Enslaving Muggles with violence, conquering technology with magic, bloodshed, slaughter, cruelty... these are the methods wizards can think of. Primitive and backward civilizations give rise to this way of thinking.

Dumbledore knew this was wrong, so he stood up to stop them, but he didn't know where the right path lay and was afraid of making the wrong choice, so he locked himself in the headmaster's office and refused to step out of his cage and touch power.

No one has ever examined the wizarding world from a Muggle perspective like Melvin, or used Muggle methods to ignite a revolution in the wizarding world.

The old headmaster, with his white hair and beard, stared blankly at the young professor. The image of that handsome young blond boy floated into his memory, and the laughter of the young wizards echoed in his ears, reminding him of similar laughter he had once heard in an orphanage.

"..."

Dumbledore looked slightly dazed. When he came to his senses, a chessboard of the future seemed to flow in his eyes. He said softly, "I remember there was a news program in the Shadow Mirror, right, Melvin?"

Melvin nodded slightly: "The program produced by Prophet Publishing still has flaws."

"News is not considered entertainment, and many people at school subscribe to newspapers."

Dumbledore paused. "After the dinner, may we show the children the news? I remember that's what Muggle orphanages and boarding schools do."

“Yes, Headmaster.” Melvin raised an eyebrow. What orphanage? The Wu Family Orphanage?
It just so happens that the Prophet News premiered today, and Editor-in-Chief Gu Fei sent himself a memory backup, so he doesn't need to connect to the Filo network, which would be quite troublesome otherwise.

……

The atmosphere at the dinner was very lively.

The dishes produced in Hogwarts kitchens may not taste as good as what your mother makes at home, but they are more varied in appearance.

The young wizards chatted and ate, reunited after a long separation, as if they had endless things to say. Sharing the ordinary things of their holiday with their friends seemed to spark endless fun, even the incident of being chased and bitten by goblins while shoveling snow seemed joyful and interesting.

While making comical gestures and using exaggerated expressions to show their panic, this performance style is good enough to get them into the drama club.

Above the auditorium, the magic dome did not mimic the pitch-black clouds outside, but instead revealed a bright starry sky, as if welcoming students back to school in this way.

Time slipped by unnoticed, and the young wizards put down their utensils one after another, leaving behind their full roasted chicken legs and patties, filling the last gaps in their stomachs with ice cream and pudding, their faces beaming with satisfaction.

"Ding Ding Ding ~"

Dumbledore tapped the glass lightly with a silver spoon, the crisp sound echoing throughout the Great Hall and drawing the attention of all the students.

"Oh, I was worried that it would spoil your appetite, so I didn't speak at the beginning of the banquet."

Dumbledore paused deliberately for a few seconds, but only the Weasley twins chuckled twice. No one else responded to the lame joke. He cast a bright look at the two of them and continued, "Now that everyone has eaten, I have a few words to say to you as the new term begins."

"First of all, I must tell you that the secret room and the basilisk are real, but they have been completely resolved. You can explore the castle with peace of mind. If you find any interesting rooms or secret passages, remember to share them with me."

"Don't even think about it!"

"impossible!"

George and Fred said in unison, and Dumbledore made a wronged and hurt expression, which made the others burst into laughter.

After the laughter subsided, the headmaster continued, "As you know, Professor Lockhart is very ill and unable to continue teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts. As in last year, the class will be taught by the four headmasters and Professor Levent, with each grade taking turns. The specific schedule will be posted on the bulletin board."

The auditorium erupted in cheers:
"Great!"

"awesome!"

"..."

Dumbledore, still wearing a faint smile, gestured to quiet the commotion and continued, "Other relevant precautions, such as the list of prohibited items, were already covered last semester, so I won't repeat them here. Now, let Professor Levent show us the Mirror News!"

The auditorium erupted in noise once again.

"What is the Mirror News?" a little witch asked.

"It must be part of the Home Theater system. My mom mentioned it was on sale when she took me to the station this morning," a Slytherin student said indignantly. "I just don't understand why it had to be released right before returning to school! Why not before the holidays!"

"Professor Levent did it on purpose!"

"Yes!"

"I think so……"

The various discussions subsided when Melvin stood up. The entire school watched his movements, seeing him take out a huge mirror from under the table, tap it lightly with his wand, and the mirror floated into the air, its silver mist swirling and outlining a faint silhouette.

The screen lit up with a faint light, and sounds could be heard continuously.

The upperclassmen in Gryffindor recognized her; she was their senior, Cecilia Haynes.

"While other wizards are resting during the Christmas holidays, the healers at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Injuries are even busier. Next, the reporter will show you footage from the hospital: Carl from Wiltshire accidentally ate a feather from a Silent Bird and can only utter sharp, rapid cries... Hoffman added hair from seven people to his Polyjuice Potion, causing him to transform and emit incorrect sounds..."

Accompanied by the background sound of birdsong, the scene of St. Mungo's Hospital is presented in the background mirror.

A bizarre-looking male witch appears in the picture, with eyes all over his face, a mouth on his forehead, a nose on his Adam's apple, and only his ears in place.

"what!"

"Wow!"

The bizarre scene caused the little witches to scream, while the boys felt a churning in their stomachs, nauseous and uncomfortable, yet they didn't want to look away.

"The release of the Home View Mirror has attracted close attention from many wizards. As a product that has never appeared in the magical world before, whether it will be accepted and how many wizards will be willing to buy it are questions that Prophet News interviewed several passersby about..."

"With the Christmas holidays over, Quidditch teams have resumed training, but Scotland's star Seeker, Lamont, is still nowhere to be seen, suspected of indulging too much during the holidays and gaining 20 pounds..."

"The despicable memory thief Gilderoy Lockhart's deception has been exposed. Newspaper reporters, acting on clues, have traveled to the local village to uncover the truth and have arrived in Miller Valley today, but have not yet found any trace of werewolves..."

"Recently, Dolores Umbridge was promoted to Senior Undersecretary, now a high-ranking official on par with department heads, and has been actively pushing forward the Anti-Werewolf Act since moving into her office. In addition, she attempted to prosecute Melvin Levent, a foreign wizard and Hogwarts Muggle Studies professor, for unauthorized Apparition, but her case was dismissed by the Wizengamor Tribunal due to a lack of evidence..."

Melvin held a glass of apple juice, sipping it slowly, while watching the news on the screen.

Just two days ago, Ms. Machiban attended a routine meeting in Wizengamo to discuss the implementation time and details of the new bill. After the meeting, Umbridge filed a lawsuit, which was dismissed on the spot by Ms. Machiban.

In the picture, besides Umbridge in her pink dress, we can also see Minister Fudge in his green suit.

Umbridge, enraged, raised her hands to block the cameras from her face and berated the reporters. The girl's high-pitched voice cracked slightly, while the other Ministry of Magic staff and wizards from Wizengamor watched quietly with amusement in their eyes.

Normally, such things would only circulate within the Ministry of Magic, and the joke would probably die down after a while.

But now that we have the Shadow Mirror, the Prophet's Newspaper has made it a news report, and all the wizards in Britain know about it, so they can keep laughing until Umbridge retires.

(End of this chapter)