This article examines how the representation of events in the news can serve to shape public opinion or discourage statesmanship. Through the example of the Rwandan genocide, my argument is that representation is constitutive of how we understand the world and the hierarchy that currently exists within mainstream media. As (Michael J. Shapiro, 1989) explained: "The reason we examine representational practices in relation to texts, language, and modes of interpretation is that it is through these practices that ideas about international relations. Genocide in Rwanda I study how a lack of representation can limit the study and practice of international relations. Alan Kuperman (2000) presented the argument that "Western media blame the international community for failing to intervene quickly, but the media must share responsibility for not immediately recognizing the scale of the carnage and for attracting the world's attention on him. I then explain how representation can often be biased and misleading, and thus manipulate the understanding of information. During the genocides in Rwanda, the role of radio and print media in inciting murder and fueling hate speech against Tutsis demonstrated the importance of controlled representation through the media. Both of these ideas are directly related to the central importance of the concept of representation in the study and practice of international relations. Western media coverage of the Rwandan genocides is analogous to the way in which our understanding of conflict, war or, more generally, the space in which international politics unfolds, is always mediated by modes of representation. National and international news media played a crucial role. ...... middle of paper ......ions. Department of International Politics. 1(1), 1-15.Mamdani, Mahmoud. (2002). African states, citizenship and war: a case study. International Affairs, 78, 3, 493-506. Obinor, F. 2005. Reporting Conflicts in African Way. Guardian Online, November 14. Available on (accessed May 19, 2011). Shapiro MJ (December 1989). The politics of representation: writing practices in biography, photography and political analysis. . 5th ed. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press. 203.Sibomana, A. 1999. Hope for Rwanda: Conversations with Laure Guilbert and Harve Deguine. Pluto Press, London, United Kingdom, 205 pages. Sidaway, J.D. (2003). Sovereign excesses? Representing landscapes of postcolonial sovereignty. PoliticsThompson, A. (2007). International media coverage of the genocide. In: Kofi Annan THE MEDIA AND THE GENOCIDE OF RWANDA. London: Pluto Press. 145-261.