JK Rowling described social media as “a gift to those who want to act maliciously” after facing online threats.
Police launched an investigation earlier this month after threatening messages were sent to the Harry Potter author, 57, on Twitter when she posted in support of Sir Salman Rushdie.
She shared a screenshot of a message from a user who wrote, “Don’t worry,” in response to her tweet about the Indian-born British-American writer being stabbed on stage in New York.
.@Twitter support Any chance of some support? pic.twitter.com/AoeCzmTKaU
— JK Rowling (@jk_rowling) August 13, 2022
Speaking to Graham Norton on Virgin Radio UK, Rowling said she wondered if anything could be done to reduce the intensity of online conflict.
she said: I don’t know if an individual can do it. I try to act online as I would like others to act.
“I definitely don’t want to do that…I’ve obviously never threatened anyone and I don’t want anyone to go to my house or do anything like that.
“Social media is a lot of fun, and I like the debate aspect of it in pubs.
Rowling, who has been criticized for her views on transgender people and biological sex, has previously said she has been the target of threats from activists on social media.
Last year, her address was posted online by an activist who posed outside her home holding a “Trans liberation now” sign.
Regarding her use of social media, Rowling said:
“I didn’t really go back to the pub brawl. I wanted to do the Ickabog, so I did it again – it was a children’s book for people who didn’t know. So I wanted to put it out for free.” But Twitter was a really good place.
“So I thought I was going to do The Ickabog, but now I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with it.
“I can happily go for a few days without getting into a pub brawl.”
Rowling was featured in the recent Harry Potter 20th Anniversary Reunion Special, but only in archived video clips.
She told Norton that she turned down an offer to appear because the program focused on movies rather than books.
she said: It was more about the movie than the book.
“Quite naturally that was what the anniversary was for. I was asked to do it, but I decided not to.”
Rowling’s views on transgender issues have drawn criticism from Potter stars, including Emma Watson and Daniel Radcliffe.
When asked if she had spoken to anyone from the cast, she replied: Some more than others, but that has always been the case. Some I knew better than others.
