Potter escapes ban in China

China’s film watchdog on Wednesday said the Harry Potter series would be kept out of the ambit of its recent ban on horror audio and visual products, reports PTI from Beijing. Hollywood blockbusters Shrek, Toy Story, Gremlin and E T would also escape the ban as their contents “are healthy”, an official of the General Administration of Press and Publications (GAPP) said.

Bedingfield backs Winehouse

British pop singer Natasha Bedingfield says she is really pleased that Amy Winehouse is back on her feet and has changed her image, reports IANS from London.

Contactmusic.com reports that Bedingfield is surprised that critics have shifted from slamming her antics to raving about her recovery. She said at the Brit Awards recently, “It’s good to see her back on her feet. Everyone has moved to really supporting her now, whereas before everyone saw her as this thing to talk about and worry about. I’m really pleased for her.”

Sex offenders use chatrooms more

Though social networking sites such as Orkut and Facebook have been blamed for being the hub of online sexual predators, a new study revealed that interactions about sex with unknown people in chatrooms increased the risk of being victimised online. It also rubbished the previous belief that Internet sex predators targeted young children by posing another youth, stating that the offenders seduced teen victims into sexual relationships, reports UNI from London.

Researchers studying the nature of Internet-initiated sex crimes stated the youth most vulnerable to online sex offenders have histories of sexual or physical abuse, family problems and tendencies to take risks in life.

The study Online Predators and Their Victims: Myths, Realities and Implications for Prevention, published in the American Psychologist revealed that those who troll the internet for sex with minors took time to develop the trust and confidence of victims, so that the youth saw these relationships as romances or sexual adventures.