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☆ 'The NRA is not Wayne LaPierre,' gun lobby lawyer tells NY corruption jury, distancing the group from longtime leader
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-10 | by ( Laura Italiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Read previewThe National Rifle Association continued walking a fine line in fighting New York's civil corruption charges on Tuesday, praising outgoing leader Wayne LaPierre as "visionary" in opening statements while also calling themselves his victim. AdvertisementThe NRA told its membership in a surprise announcement on Friday that LaPierre will step down on January 31. Advertisement"You will learn from members of the NRA board that the NRA continues to honor the legacy of Wayne LaPierre," she told the jury, before repeating, "but the NRA is not Wayne LaPierre." New York Attorney General Letitia James sued the gun lobby, LaPierre, and three other longtime NRA leaders three years ago. The jury must determine if the NRA, LaPierre, Phillips and Frazer are liable for breaking state not-for-profit law, and what amount of money, if any, should be repaid to the NRA.

Persons: —, Wayne LaPierre, Sarah B, Rogers, LaPierre, Sonya Rowling, Wayne, Mr, Letitia James, Joshua Powell, Wilson, Woody, Phillips, John Frazer, Powell, Frazer, Joel Cohen, Nick Suplina, Suplina Organizations: Service, Rifle Association, Business, NRA, New, AG, New York, Safety, Chaos Locations: Manhattan, Texas, Lyme, New York, Wayne's, Orange

☆ British author A.S. Byatt, who won Booker prize for 'Possession' dies aged 87
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The Man Booker Prize shortlisted authors Adam Foulds (L), Hilary Mantel (2nd L), A S Byatt (2nd R) and Simon Mawer pose for photographers in London October 5, 2009. REUTERS/Toby Melville/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Booker-prize winning British novelist Antonia Susan Byatt, known most commonly as A.S. Byatt, has died aged 87, her publisher said in a statement on Friday. Byatt, whose career spanned nearly 60 years, was best known for her 1990 novel "Possession: A Romance". Seven years later came her breakthrough with Possession, which became a bestseller and won the coveted Booker Prize for Fiction the same year. Byatt won a number of awards and titles including a CBE (Commander of the British Empire) and DBE (Dame of the British Empire).

Persons: Booker, Adam Foulds, Hilary, Simon Mawer, Toby Melville, Antonia Susan Byatt, Byatt, Margaret Drabble, Antonia, Charles, Gwyneth Paltrow, Harry Potter, JK Rowling, Mike Collett, White, Kylie MacLellan, Gareth Jones Organizations: REUTERS, Chatto & Windus, Penguin Random, Quaker, Cambridge, Oxford, Thomson Locations: London, British, English, Sheffield, York

NEW YORK (AP) — Britney Spears' memoir “The Woman in Me” has sold 1.1 million copies in the U.S. alone through its first week. On the day of publication, Spears posted on Instagram that her book had become “the highest selling celebrity memoir in history.” It is not, so far, even the highest selling memoir of 2023. But Prince Harry's memoir “Spare,” which came out in January, sold 1.6 million U.S. copies in its first week. In one day last week, from Monday to Tuesday, Spears’ catalog jumped 18.2% in on-demand streams, and 36.8% in album sales. According to Luminate, her U.S. streams increased 24% over the previous week — from 16 million to 19.8 million; her album sales were up 61.4% and digital sales 49%.

Persons: Britney Spears, ”, Spears, Simon & Schuster, Justin Timberlake, Prince, Luminate, Oscar, Michelle Williams, Williams, Barack Obama's, Michelle Obama's “, Harry Potter, “ Harry Potter, Maria Sherman Organizations: Books, Simon & Locations: U.S, ”

☆ The difficult task of verifying truth in a war zone, especially now
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-16 | by ( Claire Atkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

A report of "40 beheaded babies" in Israel made the rounds last week as journalists worked to verify it. AdvertisementAdvertisementLast week, I was watching CNN and heard a someone describing the Hamas attacks on a kibbutz referencing 40 beheaded babies. The i24news' online story references "40 babies and young children" taken out on gurneys from the town of Kfar Aza. "I just wanted to clarify that I did not tweet 40 babies had been beheaded. Clearly fed up with the mess, BBC's Sardarizadeh, wrote on X, "War is not a game for retweets and likes on social media."

Persons: Claire Atkinson, —, Cooper, Nic Robertson, Robertson, Rashida, Kfar Aza, Marc Owen Jones, JK, Bel, Anna Botting, hadn't, Justin Peden, Sardarizadeh, Elon, Elon Musk, Thierry Breton, Musk, BBC's Sardarizadeh, Rupert Murdoch, She's, Atkinson Organizations: Media, Service, CNN, Fox, Fox News, The Independent, Sky News, Comcast, Times, The Media Locations: Israel, Kfar, Gaza

As a result, books like “Call Me Max” have been challenged or outright removed from schools and libraries in Florida, as well as other states — and though some believe book bans lead to more book sales, authors say the effect of those bans is devastating for their careers. These bans “overwhelmingly” target books about race and racism, as well as books with LGBTQ characters, PEN America said in its September study on school book bans. The MoveOn Banned Book Mobile stops for an event with local authors and teachers on October 1, 2023 in Decatur, Georgia. “(A book ban) would make news, and people would say, ‘I’ll buy this book just to show them,’” Lukoff said of the once-common result of book bans. Lukoff said his first high-profile bans occurred in early 2021, in Austin and Salt Lake City, when book bans first started to accelerate.

Persons: CNN —, Ron DeSantis, Max, ”, ‘, ” DeSantis, Max ”, Kyle Lukoff, Newbery, “ I’ve, —, ” Lukoff, “, ” Kyle Lukoff's, Marvin Joseph, Phil Bildner, ” “, Bildner, PEN America, Tasslyn Magnusson, Read, Derek White, Magnusson, ” Laurie Halse Anderson’s, George M, Deborah Caldwell, Stone, Angie Thomas, “ Maus, “ Maus ”, ” Magnusson, Lukoff, BookScan, Juno, Mike Curato’s “, John Green’s “, Samira Ahmed, Laura Gluckman, Armando L, Sanchez, Maus, ’ ” Lukoff, … that’s, they’re, she’s, haven’t, “ It’s, isn’t, Ahmed, ” Bildner, Caldwell, J.K, Rowling, Harper Lee, Art Spiegelman, ‘ Maus, ’ ”, Torrey Maldonado, ” Maldonado, who’ve, Eileen T, ’ ” Magnusson, ’, ” Ahmed, it’s, “ I’m, I’m, Maldonado, They’re Organizations: CNN, Florida Gov, Washington Post, PEN America, Liberty, Utah Parents United, Mobile, American, Association’s, Intellectual, ”, Association of American Publishers, Women, Chicago Tribune, Getty, America Locations: Florida, bookshelves, Rye, PEN, Utah, Decatur , Georgia, Tennessee, Alaska, Chicago, Sandmeyer's, Austin, Salt Lake City

☆ Michael Gambon, actor who played Dumbledore in 'Harry Potter' films, dies at 82
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-28 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Michael Gambon Arriving At The World Premiere Of Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part 2, In Trafalgar Square In Central London. Actor Michael Gambon, known for playing Professor Albus Dumbledore in multiple "Harry Potter" movies has died, his family said in a statement Thursday. "We are devastated to announce the loss of Sir Michael Gambon," said the statement issued on behalf of his wife, Anne, and son Fergus by publicist Clair Dobbs. He also won three Olivier Awards and two ensemble cast Screen Actors Guild Awards — for 2001's "Gosford Park" and "The King's Speech." But he was perhaps best known for his role as Dumbledore in the "Harry Potter" franchise, taking over the role from the late Richard Harris from the third installment in the eight-movie series.

Persons: Michael Gambon, Harry Potter, Albus Dumbledore, Sir Michael Gambon, Anne, Fergus, Clair Dobbs, Gambon, Laurence Olivier, Derek Jacobi, Maggie Smith, Cook, King George V, Lord Salisbury, Victoria, Abdul, Olivier, —, Dumbledore, Richard Harris, Rowling's, Anne Miller, Philippa Hart Organizations: Hallows, Central London, National Theatre, British Academy of Film, Television Arts Locations: Trafalgar, Central, Dublin, Britain

☆ Daniel Radcliffe and other 'Harry Potter' stars remember 'magnificent' Michael Gambon
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-28 | by ( Dan Heching | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Daniel Radcliffe, the lead star of the original “Harry Potter” film franchise, is remembering his late costar Michael Gambon after Gambon died of pneumonia this week at age 82. “Harry Potter” author J.K. Rowling also took time to remember the actor on Thursday, writing on X/Twitter, “I’ve just heard the awful news about Michael Gambon. Actor Jason Isaacs, who played Lucius Malfoy in the “Potter” films, called Gambon “magnificent” in his tribute on X/Twitter, continuing, “I learned what acting could be from Michael in The Singing Detective - complex, vulnerable and utterly human. “We are devastated to announce the loss of Sir Michael Gambon,” the statement issued by his publicist Clair Dobbs said, according to PA. Correction: A previous version of this story erroneously attributed a quote to Daniel Radcliffe.

Persons: CNN — Daniel Radcliffe, Harry Potter, Michael Gambon, Gambon, “ Michael Gambon, I’ve, ” Radcliffe, “, ”, Rupert Grint, Ron Weasley, Michael, ” Gambon, Dumbledore, Harry Potter ”, Richard Harris, “ Harry Potter ”, J.K, Rowling, “ I’ve, King Lear, you’d, I’d, ” “ Michael, Jason Isaacs, Lucius Malfoy, Potter, Sir Michael Gambon, Clair Dobbs, Daniel Radcliffe Organizations: CNN, Media, Radcliffe

☆ The raw materials for creating AI
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Alistair Barr | Kali Hays | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The AI models behind this technology are built using high-quality datasets from millions of different sources. These are the raw materials for model "training," in industry parlance. Nvidia GPUs are the main hardware required for AI model training. AdvertisementAdvertisementOver 8,000 authors, including Margaret Atwood and James Patterson, signed an open letter demanding compensation from AI companies for using their works to train AI without permission. Got a tip or insights about the leading AI companies OpenAI, Google, Microsoft and Meta?

Persons: ChatGPT, Nat Friedman, Ben Thompson, Friedman, There's, OpenAI, Reddit, Sarah Silverman, Margaret Atwood, James Patterson, JK Rowling's Harry Potter, Alistair Barr Organizations: Service, Nvidia, Tech, Amazon, LexisNexis, Meta, Google, Microsoft, Twitter Locations: Wall, Silicon, abarr@insider.com

☆ Jeffrey A. Trachtenberg — Reporter at The Wall Street Journal
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-09 | by ( Jeffrey A. Trachtenberg | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +2 min

Jeffrey A. TrachtenbergJeffrey Trachtenberg covers the book industry and is part of the Journal’s Media and Marketing Bureau in New York. Other topics in Jeff’s coverage have included the popularity of political books, debates over “cancel culture” within publishing houses and other literary trends. Jeff co-authored a 2021 series on the succession drama at Scholastic, following the unexpected death of the children’s publisher’s longtime boss. Jeff has also covered the magazine industry for the Journal, chronicling how giants such as Condé Nast have sought to pivot from a focus on glossy print titles into online publishers. Previously, Jeff covered the retailing, consumer electronics and music industries for the Journal, reporting on such big retail chains as Federated Department Stores and Saks Fifth Avenue, and the music arms of Sony, Bertelsmann and Polygram.

Persons: Jeffrey A, Trachtenberg Jeffrey Trachtenberg, he’s, Barnes, Noble, Jimmy Carter, Philip Roth, J.K, Rowling, Jeff, Condé Nast, Barry, Meredith, Ralph Lauren, Jacqueline Bisset, Kirk Douglas, Lew Wasserman Organizations: Journal’s Media, Marketing Bureau, Scholastic, IAC, Better Homes, Gardens, Federated Department Stores, Saks Fifth, Sony, Bertelsmann, Polygram, Forbes, Franklin & Marshall College Locations: New York, Westchester, N.Y

☆ 'Data leverage' and the Harry Potter test: How much is a single book worth to a giant AI model?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Alistair Barr | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

This month, serious AI researchers waded into this debate with 2 papers that seek to address various aspects of the situation. AdvertisementAdvertisementThe Harry Potter testThen the researchers went deep into the weeds, using J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books to see if individual pieces of data influence AI model performance. The other datastore excluded all 7 Harry Potter books. Then they repeated the exercise, excluding the second Harry Potter book, then the third, and so on. Important legal benefitsHelping J.K. Rowling make even more money from her Harry Potter books was not the goal of the SILO study, though.

Persons: Nick Vincent, Vincent, what's, Benedict Evans, I've, I'm, Harry Potter, Rowling's Harry Potter, LLMs, there's, Rowling, Oren Etzoni, Etzioni Organizations: Morning, Simon Fraser University, University of Washington, UC Berkeley, Allen Institute, AI Locations: Vancouver, Google's, Seattle

☆ ByteDance AI researchers say OpenAI now tries to hide that ChatGPT was trained on J.K. Rowling's copyrighted Harry Potter books
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-15 | by ( Kali Hays | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Companies like OpenAI are under growing scrutiny over their use of copyrighted material. Prompts about Harry Potter books have showed how common the use of copyrighted work is in LLMs. ChatGPT is trying to hide that it was trained on copyrighted material, according to new research. As do many other AI models, given they've been trained on huge swaths of copyrighted material. The researchers suggested that users who prompt these models to show copyrighted work are "misusing" the technology.

Persons: ChatGPT, Harry Potter, OpenAI's ChatGPT, OpenAI, Microsoft –, J.K, Rowling, Kali Hays Organizations: Google, Microsoft, Tsinghua University China, Twitter Locations: LLMs, Meta, khays

☆ Artists are losing the battle against AI. Glaze, a tool that's found a way to trick algorithms, is giving them a fighting chance.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

AI would soon be better than human artists, Beverly was told. In October, Beverly checked a website, HaveIBeenTrained.com, that reveals if an artwork or photo was used to teach AI models. That image can still be fed to AI learning models, but the data gleaned from it would be inaccurate, Zhao told Insider. His team conceptualized the program when they were contacted by artists worried that AI models were specifically targeting their personal work. That could theoretically lead to a pseudo-arms race, where AI companies and the Glaze team continually try to one-up each other.

Persons: they've, She'd, Gigs, Beverly, I'd, Glaze, Ben Zhao, Zhao, Jackson, Autumn Beverly, Beverly Glaze, Celso Flores, Flickr, It's, Van Gogh, Sarah Andersen, Andersen, she's, you've, that's, Haibing Lu, Lu, Martin Senftleben, Senftleben, Harry Potter, J.K, Rowling doesn't, I'm, Midjourney Organizations: University of Chicago, Autumn Beverly, of Liberty, The University of Chicago, Santa Clara University, Tech, University of Amsterdam, Artists Locations: Ohio, —

☆ Warner Bros, NetEase launch 'Harry Potter: Magic Awakened' video game
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

June 27 (Reuters) - A Warner Bros Discovery Inc (WBD.O) unit and China's NetEase Inc on Tuesday announced the worldwide launch of role-playing video game "Harry Potter: Magic Awakened". The free-to-play title will let players experience life as a student at Hogwarts, the fictional school of wizardry in the popular "Harry Potter" series of books by J.K.Rowling. Players can learn magic spells and summon "Harry Potter" characters such as Hermione Granger and Rubeus Hagrid as allies to aid in their battles. The game can be downloaded for free on iOS and Android platforms from Tuesday, the companies said. Reporting by Tiyashi Datta in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb ChakrabartyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Harry Potter, J.K.Rowling, Hermione Granger, Rubeus Hagrid, Tiyashi Datta, Saumyadeb Organizations: Warner Bros Discovery Inc, Inc, Tuesday, Thomson Locations: Hogwarts, Bengaluru

☆ Russian legislators are targeting transgender people. It's the latest move that copies GOP talking points from the US
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russian legislators are targeting transgender people in a move that mirrors US GOP politics. A new bill in Moscow would ban gender affirming care for any reason other than birth defects. According to state media, the bill would also ban gender changes in public record information. The bill, put forward on Tuesday, would ban gender-affirming surgeries and care, according to Russian state media outlet TASS. Seventy-eight bills targeting transgender care have passed this year, while 373 bills are currently being actively considered, according to Trans Legislation Tracker.

☆ 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.

☆ Researchers found a surefire predictor of success — and what separates those who find it from those who keep failing
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Susie Allen | Kellogg Insight | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Using this insight, the researchers are able to successfully predict an individual's long-term success with just a small amount of information about that person's initial attempts. Indeed, in another recent study, Wang himself found that an early career setback often set up scientists for later success. In all three datasets, an individual's second-to-last attempt did tend have a higher probability of success than their very first effort. Rather, there's a singular learning threshold that separates eventual successes from the rest. "Thomas Edison said, 'people give up because they don't know how close they are to success,'" Wang explains.

☆ What to know about Bluesky, the Twitter alternative that some celebrities and journalists are joining
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Kalhan Rosenblatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

While Bluesky's beta was made public in February, buzz surrounding the platform grew in April as more Twitter users began posting about flocking there. Although the Bluesky app has many similarities to Twitter, its key difference is that it is organized around a decentralized system. One person even claimed to sell Bluesky invite codes for more than $190 on eBay. The Bluesky app racked up 375,000 downloads on iOS worldwide as of Wednesday, according to analytics firm Data.ai. Jordan Uhl, a progressive activist with more than 271,000 followers on Twitter, joined Bluesky on April 14.

☆ Scores of world figures urge Putin to free Navalny in open letter
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 28 (Reuters) - Scores of famous figures, including writers and actors, have signed an open letter urging Russian President Vladimir Putin to free opposition politician Alexei Navalny and to end what they called his torture in prison. Russian authorities say Navalny and his supporters are extremists with links to the U.S. CIA intelligence agency intent on trying to destabilise Russia. They have outlawed his movement and Navalny himself is facing new charges that could add years to his prison sentence. Navalny's supporters have grown increasingly worried about his health in recent weeks, saying they fear he could die in jail. The Kremlin denied trying to kill him and said there was no evidence he was poisoned with a nerve agent.

☆ 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.

☆ Elon Musk is paying for a few of his favorite celebrities to stay on Twitter Blue, even after they dissed the new blue checks
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Elon Musk said he's personally paying for several top celebrities' Twitter Blue subscriptions. Billionaire Elon Musk says he's personally paying for several well-known figures to stay on Twitter Blue after they refused to fork up $8 for a monthly subscription. "My Twitter account says I've subscribed to Twitter Blue. James received an email from Twitter offering free verification "on behalf of Elon Musk," the outlet reported. Musk on Wednesday responded to the online discussion of celebrities receiving free verification, saying he is "paying for a few personally" to keep their Twitter Blue subscriptions.

☆ A 'Harry Potter' TV series is in the works. Here's everything we know.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Olivia Singh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Warner Bros. Television is working on a scripted "Harry Potter" TV show. AdvertisementA "Harry Potter" TV show is in the works. AdvertisementThe series will be a 'faithful adaptation of the beloved original Harry Potter books'Rupert Grint, Daniel Radcliffe, and Emma Watson starred in the "Harry Potter" films. J.K. Rowling will serve as an executive producerJ.K. Rowling is the author of the "Harry Potter" book series. The show is eyeing a release in 2026Daniel Radcliffe as Harry in "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone."

Persons: Harry Potter, —, Max, J.K, Rowling, Rupert Grint, Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Casey Bloys, Evan Agostini, Neil Blair, Ruth Kenley, Letts, David Heyman, Harry, David Zaslav, Zaslav, Channing Dungey, Kirsten Acuna Organizations: Warner Bros . Television, Warner Bros, Discovery, Service, HBO, Max, Business, Twitter, WB, Hollywood Locations: Los Angeles, WarnerMedia

☆ Harry Potter series, another 'Game of Thrones' prequel coming to Max streaming service
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Lisa Richwine | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Neil Hall/File PhotoLOS ANGELES, April 12 (Reuters) - Boy wizard Harry Potter is headed to streaming television in a new series based on the beloved books by author J.K. Rowling. Warner Bros Discovery (WBD.O) announced the series on Wednesday as part of the company's plans for its Max streaming service, which combines HBO Max with unscripted programming from Discovery. The seven Harry Potter books have sold more than 600 million copies worldwide. Harry Potter fan blogs and actors including Radcliffe objected to her remarks. Other new shows coming to Max include a new "Game of Thrones" prequel, titled "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight," with author George R.R.

☆ Warner Bros Discovery unveils revamped 'Max' in push for streaming growth
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Dawn Chmielewski | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Warner Bros Discovery eliminated "HBO" from the name of the streaming service, which for some viewers connotes bespoke series but repels others. He repudiated his predecessor's COVID-19 era strategy of releasing new movies simultaneously in theaters and in the home, via HBO Max. Instead, Warner Bros films would enjoy a traditional theatrical release and reap box office proceeds before becoming available on the streaming service. It licensed some of these shows to other streaming services, as Warner Bros Discovery looked for new ways to monetize its film and television libraries. Like other media companies, Warner Bros Discovery has yet to turn a profit on its HBO Max and Discovery+ streaming services, though the company has reduced losses from them.

☆ Warner Bros. Discovery is bringing Harry Potter back as it closes in on a deal for a new TV series, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Sawdah Bhaimiya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Warner Bros. Discovery is close to a deal for a new Harry Potter TV series, per Bloomberg. The people, who asked not to be identified because the deal is yet to be announced, said Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Meanwhile, the overall Harry Potter franchise which includes books, toys, and games has earned $15 billion, Insider reported in 2021.

☆ 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.

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