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What does the Olympics controversy over Algerian boxer Imane Khelif have to do with J.K. Rowling’s home wallpaper? A representative for Rowling declined to comment on her wallpaper and the backlash to her posts about Khelif. LGBTQ people and groups like GLAAD have condemned Rowling’s views, calling them transphobic, and “Harry Potter” actor Daniel Radcliffe spoke out against her in 2020. Some of Rowling’s defenders responded to the mold posts, suggesting that what people online claim is mold is actually wallpaper. Google search interest in “jk rowling mold” has also skyrocketed since then, with breakout search queries like “jk rowling black mold meme” in Canada, the U.S., the U.K. and Australia.

Persons: Imane Khelif, —, “, ” Khelif, Rowling, ” “, ”, Harry Potter, Daniel Radcliffe, X, Harry Potter ”, Rowling’s, JD Vance, “ jk rowling Organizations: International Olympics, IOC, ” “ Jk, GLAAD, “ Locations: British, Russian, Canada, U.S, Australia

☆ Hugo Awards: Hundreds of fraudulent votes cast in prestigious science fiction prize
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-23 | by ( Louis Mian | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Hundreds of votes were cast fraudulently for one finalist in the prestigious Hugo Awards, which honors the best science fiction and fantasy works of the previous year, its administrative team has revealed. The Hugo Awards can only be voted on by members of the World Science Fiction Society, who gather at annual conventions commonly known as “Worldcon,” which brings together science fiction enthusiasts from around the globe. A membership for the World Science Fiction Society costs about $58 (£45), meaning the membership fees to cast 377 fraudulent votes would cost about $21,900 (£16,960). The Hugo Awards, established in 1953, has 15 categories, including best novel, best short story and best fanzine. Jemisin’s “The Stone Sky.”John Scalzi, one of this year’s finalists for his book “Starter Villain,” praised the Hugo Awards’ transparency in a post on his website.

Persons: Hugo, Rowling’s, Harry Potter, Martha Wells, Jemisin’s, John Scalzi, ”, “, ” Scalzi Organizations: CNN, Science Fiction Society Locations: Scottish, Glasgow, Seattle , Washington

☆ Original ‘Harry Potter’ cover art sells for $1.9 million, setting auction record
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-27 | by ( Amarachi Orie | Lianne Kolirin | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —The original illustration for the first edition of J.K. Rowling’s 1997 novel “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” has sold for a record-breaking $1.9 million. The image features young wizard Harry Potter – with his unmistakable dark, brown hair, round glasses and lightning bolt scar – ready to board the Hogwarts Express train for his first trip to the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The first edition of 1997 book "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone," which Taylor illustrated. BNPS/ShutterstockTaylor, just 23 years old at the time, created the original cover image in two days, according to Sotheby’s. The illustration was auctioned on Wednesday at Sotheby’s in New York along with other works of English and American Literature.

Persons: Harry Potter, ”, Sotheby’s, Thomas Taylor, Harry Potter –, Sotheby's, “ Harry Potter, Taylor, Shutterstock Taylor Organizations: CNN, Hogwarts Express, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft, Heritage Auctions Locations: New York, Sotheby’s, London, Dallas , Texas

☆ Harry Potter: Original cover art for ‘The Philosopher’s Stone’ to go on sale
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Amarachi Orie | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —J.K. Rowling’s 1997 novel “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” was the beginning of what would become a worldwide phenomenon. Now, the original illustration for the first edition of the book is going on sale. Taylor’s cover was used for several translated versions of the book, the auction house said. The first edition of 1997 book "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" -- which Taylor illustrated. The manuscript is one of six handwritten by the British author that was originally intended as gifts for people closely involved with the publication of “Harry Potter,” according to the release.

Persons: CNN —, Harry Potter, ”, Thomas Taylor, Harry Potter –, Sotheby's, “, “ Harry Potter, Taylor, Shutterstock Taylor Organizations: CNN, Hogwarts Express, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft, Heritage Auctions Locations: Sotheby’s, London, Dallas , Texas, New York, American, British

☆ Daniel Radcliffe ‘really sad’ about J.K. Rowling’s anti-trans rhetoric
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Lisa Respers France | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Don’t look for Daniel Radcliffe and J.K. Rowling to reunite any time soon. Radcliffe found fame as a child actor starring as Harry Potter in the film franchise based on Rowling’s wildly successful book series. In a recently published interview with The Atlantic, Radcliffe talked about Rowling’s past comments that have been perceived by many as anti-trans. Radcliffe released a statement via The Trevor Project shortly after Rowling’s posts in 2020. “Transgender women are women,” he wrote in his statement.

Persons: Daniel Radcliffe, J.K, Rowling, Radcliffe, Harry Potter, ”, menstruate ”, Trevor, ” Radcliffe, Harry Potter ”, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, “, ” Rowling, Dan, Emma, “ celebs, ” “ Organizations: CNN, Atlantic Locations: British

☆ Scotland’s new hate crime law was meant to protect against prejudice. It ended up sowing further division
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-10 | by ( Amy Cassidy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Scotland’s Hate Crime and Public Order Act came into force last week, a contentious law that expands existing legislation to include transgender identity as a protected characteristic from hate crimes. In the first week of the law’s enactment, a feminist group, “Let Women Speak,” organized a rally against the legislation in Scotland’s capital on Saturday. Another major concern for those who oppose the Hate Crime Act is the supposed lack of clarity on what type of behavior could constitute an offense under the new law. But 25-year-old Scottish trans student Lucy (who asked not to be identified by her real name due to concerns about continued online abuse), said the new law does not reassure her. Scotland’s proposed reforms would have allowed transgender people to self-identify, without the need for a medical diagnosis or certificate.

Persons: –, – Humza Yousaf, ”, JK Rowling, Elon Musk, Joe Rogan, Jane Barlow, ’, Susan Smith, “, ’ ” Smith, Siobhan Brown, Rowling, Harry Potter, Yousaf, J, Rowling waded, Angela Weiss, ” Vic Valentine, Lucy, Scotland’s, hadn’t, Musk, Ian Miles Cheong Organizations: CNN, ” Scottish, Reuters, Scottish, Women Scotland, Community Safety, Police Scotland, BBC, Getty, Scottish Trans, Public Affairs, Equality Network, Scottish Police Federation, ” Police, Courier, PA Media, Police Locations: Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom, British, Scottish, Malaysian

☆ An LGBTQ+ creator got death threats after working with Target
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( Danielle Wiener-Bronner | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

New York CNN —When a Target distributor reached out to Erik Carnell last year about possibly placing his brand, Abprallen, in Target stores, he was thrilled. In the following months, Carnell pitched Target and came up with designs that would be appropriate for the big box store, he said. Ultimately, Target started selling three Abprallen items for adults: A sweatshirt, a tote bag and a messenger bag, each emblazoned with a different phrase. By Wednesday, Target had pulled Abprallen items from its US stores and online market, Reuters reported. Pride month merchandise is displayed at the front of a Target store in Hackensack, N.J., Wednesday, May 24, 2023.

☆ Daniel Radcliffe and Erin Darke have had their first child
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Hafsa Khalil | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Daniel Radcliffe and his long-term partner, actress Erin Darke, have had their first child. Scott Boute, a representative for Radcliffe, confirmed the birth to CNN on Wednesday, after the Daily Mail published photographs of the couple pushing a pram in New York earlier this week. The baby’s sex and date of birth haven’t been disclosed. While promoting his role in “Weird: The Al Yankovic Story” last year, Radcliffe told Newsweek that he would love his kids to experience “wonderful” film sets – but without the fame. He shot to instant fame with the 2001 release of “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone,” the first in what became a blockbuster eight-movie franchise.

☆ Fact Check-J.K. Rowling tweet thanking LGBTQ community for ‘Hogwarts Legacy’ game sales is fabricated
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Author J.K. Rowling did not tweet a post thanking the LGBTQ community for sales of the ‘Hogwarts Legacy’ computer game, despite a screenshot circulating online. A spokesperson for JK Rowling, Rebecca Salt, told Reuters that no such tweet was published. A Twitter advanced search via Rowling’s account did not reveal the tweet (archive.is/wip/PmBkF). Archived versions of Rowling’s Twitter account saved on Feb. 24 did not reveal the tweet either (here). No such tweet was posted by J.K. Rowling.

☆ Hogwarts Legacy breaks record before official release, despite controversy
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Vanessa Yurkevich | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Hogwarts Legacy – the new open-world video game by Avalanche and Warner Bros. Hogwarts Legacy is based on Harry Potter but is set in the late 1800s, well before the action in the Harry Potter books take place, and opens the Harry Potter World beyond Hogwarts Castle. Videogamesnewyork, a New York City store that sells modern and retro video games, is ordering just enough games to their store based on pre-orders. Some gamers also are boycotting Hogwarts Legacy over the controversy. The company says J.K. Rowling is not involved in the Hogwarts Legacy game.

☆ Graham Norton says ‘cancel culture’ is really just accountability
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Scottie Andrew | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —The phrase “cancel culture” has become a ubiquitous catchall that celebrities may cling to after they make a controversial or offensive statement. But Graham Norton doesn’t think that’s the correct description for what really happens when fans criticize “canceled” people. Speaking to interviewer Mariella Frostrup, Norton decried the concept of “canceling” anyone who still has a sizable platform from which to speak. “You read a lot of articles in papers by people complaining about ‘cancel culture,’” he told Frostrup. I’m reading your name in a newspaper, or you’re doing an interview about how terrible it is to be canceled.”“I think [‘cancel culture’] is the wrong word,” he continued.

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