Duolingo has apologised after a user was left gobsmacked by a lesson that took aim at Harry Potter author JK Rowling.
Founded in 2011, the American app offers courses on 43 languages, with customers also incentivised with points and rewards and encouraged to use it daily to maintain ‘streaks’ of learning.
However, journalist Gaby Koppel was taken aback recently when a German lesson she was undertaking made a pointed dig at the writer, who has faced significant backlash in recent years over her views on the transgender community.
The lesson involved users being presented with the question: ‘Do you like books with Harry Potter as a character?’
They then had to select the correct response, with the answer being: ‘Yes, but in my opinion the author is mean.’
Meanwhile the wrong response read: ‘Yes, you’re right. I’m interested in sports.’
Posting a screenshot on X, she wrote: ‘Shame on you @duolingo: learning German and I came across the sentence “Yes I like Harry Potter, but the author is mean. How woke do you have to be to let #trans ideology infect a language lesson?’
Koppel said she was attempting to learn German on the app when stumbling across the insult.
Speaking to The Telegraph, she then slammed the app: ‘It’s gratuitous – how is Rowling relevant to learning German?’
She added that Rowling was the ‘first and only real-life person’ that had been ‘picked out for criticism’ in the five months she had used the app.
‘Not Putin, not the Ayatollahs, but somebody who happens to take a gender-critical stance,’ she went on.
Duolingo has an estimated 34.1 million daily active users, making it the most popular language app globally.
Responding to the backlash, a spokesperson from the company said: ‘We apologise for any offence caused and will remove this content from the app.’
In recent years Rowling has made clear her gender critical views on social media, unapologetically sharing them frequently despite being repeatedly slammed and subjected to intense criticism from trans people and those who support their rights.
Earlier this year she was slammed after celebrating the Supreme Court ruling on sex earlier this year in May.
The writer posed with a cigarillo in her mouth and a drink in her hand on her yacht in the Caribbean Sea as she toasted the ruling: ‘I love it when a plan comes together.’
That definition means trans people can now be blocked from accessing designated single-sex spaces.
Her involvement in the upcoming HBO TV adaptation of Harry Potter, on which she will serve as an executive producer, has also seen those involved come under fire.
After the cast of an Audible project that involves re-recording the audiobooks was also recently announced, one of the cast members responded to the backlash.
Scottish actress Michelle Gomez, who will voice Professor McGonagall, was flooded with comments on social media slamming her decision to take part.
She went on to release a statement, which read: ‘To my LBGBTQ+ fans, and especially the trans community: I want to speak directly to the concerns that have been raised about my involvement in this project. I hear you, and I understand why this is painful for many. I want to be clear that I stand with trans people, and I support trans rights – fully and without hesitation.
‘When I accepted this role, I did so as someone who has always loved the stories and what they meant to so many – especially those who found comfort and identity in that world.
‘I now understand more clearly how deeply complicated and hurtful this association can feel, and I take that seriously. Being an ally means listening even when it’s uncomfortable and taking accountability when it’s needed. I’m committed to doing both.’
The first Harry Potter book was released in 1997, with the series eventually wrapping up in 2007.
They have sold more than 600 million copies worldwide, making them the best-selling book series in history.
Metro has contacted Duolingo and representatives for JK Rowling for comment.
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