Date:26/07/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/07/26/stories/2007072652292200.htm

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Known to millions, still a secret

Harry Potter’s fate remains officially so — despite spoilers

NEW YORK: The fate of Harry Potter and friends, known now to millions, remains officially secret — sort of.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the final volume of author J.K. Rowling’s fantasy series, came out on Saturday amid an international frenzy to find out whether Harry lived or died. More than 10 million copies sold over the weekend and the suspense was apparently unbroken by a wave of pre-release Internet spoilers, including photographed images of the entire book, page by page.

Days after publication, Harry’s lot has been widely revealed, but you are unlikely to find out by accident. At least two online publications, Slate and Salon, describe the plot at length, but carry emphatic spoiler alerts. Videos labelled as spoilers have popped up on YouTube. Readers spill on the fan sites http://www.mugglenet.com/ and http://www.the-leaky-cauldron.org, but, again, those linking to discussion boards are warned.

“I think we should have at least a few months, allow people to read and discuss and digest before blasting it from headlines,” says Leaky Cauldron. “It will be at least that long before we reveal a plot detail on Leaky that we don’t put behind a link.”

Both The (Baltimore) Sun and The New York Times were inundated with angry e-mails for running prepublication reviews, although both avoided major plot points. Radio station WNYC, in New York Cit y, was supposed to air a review on Monday — two days after the book came out — but changed it to a general discussion about spoilers because of concerns over giving away the ending. A two-part interview with Ms. Rowling, who before publication had begged for secrecy, will be aired on Thursday and Friday on NBC-TV’s ‘Today’ show.

A spokeswoman for Rowling’s U.S. publisher, Scholastic, declined comment on what the author will say. Scholastic issued the book under a strict embargo and sued one retailer, DeepDiscount.com, after some customers received early copies. When asked about post-release spoilers, the spokeswoman said Scholastic’s only request was not to reveal anything before the publication date. — AP