Book Takes on Abuse
When prosecutor Jill Starishevsky authored a children’s book that would teach kids how to respond to sexual abuse, several publishers showed interest—only they wanted her to cut the line in which the story’s child is actually abused.

“They wanted to just take it out,” Starishevsky said. “Take it out? If I take it out, why am I writing it?”

Starishevsky opted to publish My Body herself, and she hopes the book will help encourage abused children to speak out—something they rarely do.

“When children are sexually abused, they don’t tell anyone; and a lot of people don’t appreciate that,” she said. “They think, ‘Oh, if it’s my child, they would speak up.’” (Associated Press)

Deceiving Looks
In their ongoing war against child pornography, law enforcement officials not only must deal with the constantly changing world of Internet crime but with sites that feature legal-age models just playing for the camera. Such sites, which often label themselves as “barely legal,” can confuse surfers who accidentally stumble on them. “It’s a sign of the world we live in, unfortunately,” says police detective Adam Romine, who works for the Colorado Springs’ Internet Crimes Against Children Unit. (The Gazette, Colorado Springs)

Is That Your Phone, or Are You Just Happy to See Me?
A new cell phone ring tone in India sings, “Condom, condom!”—apparently an effort to drum up support for safe sex.

While HIV and AIDS are on the rise in India, condoms carry some serious social stigma. The ring tones are intended to be a cheeky way to bring condom use out in the open.

“A ring tone is a very public thing,” says Yvonne MacPherson, country director of BBC World Service Trust India—a health group funded by The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. “It’s a way to show you are a condom user and you don’t have any issues with it.”

Apparently, the effort seems to be working. The ring tone was downloaded about 60,000 times within the first 10 days of its release. (Associated Press)