Pew Research Center for the People & the Press
Who's Wild About Harry?
So Far, the Public Is More Interested in Buying the Book than in Reading about It
In addition to the hard news stories of the week, Harry Potter-mania became a news story of its own. In the week ending July 13, the national media devoted 1% of its top story coverage to news about the release of the newest Harry Potter movie and the upcoming release of the final book in the series. While the public wasn't particularly interested in Potter news a week or more before the book's release (only 8% followed related news very closely), a substantial minority (25%) say they or someone in their household plan to buy the new Harry Potter book when it comes out.
As the 12:01-Saturday- July 21 deadline approaches, public interest in news about Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, may have increased as major news media have given greater attention to the book's publication. In particular, controversy about alleged pre-deadline internet postings and printed copy sales of the embargoed book attracted the attention of such sober-minded outlets as the Wall Street Journal, while the New York Times came under attack on Thursday for publishing an overly revelatory review of J.K. Rowling's latest and final installment in the highly popular series.
Yet even before this additional publicity, fully 44% of adults in households with teenagers said they or someone in their household plan to buy the book. Of course, the public's intentions may not fully translate into actual book sales after all the pre-release publicity dies down, but the level of expressed interest is striking.
College graduates are much more likely than those who never attended college to say someone in their household plans to buy the new Harry Potter book (35% vs. 17%). Those age 65 and older are among the least likely to buy the book (11% say someone in their household will purchase it). Among those ages 50-64, however, 26% say they have plans to buy the new book. Women were more interested than men in news about Harry Potter news, but they are no more likely than men to say they plan to buy the book.