Village Voice: Craigslist sex trafficking scandal based on bogus stats

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Village Voice: Craigslist sex trafficking scandal based on bogus stats
By Helen A.S. Popkin


Last September, Craigslist shuttered its controversial adult services section, replacing the link with the word "censored" in bold black font.

The move came following mounting government pressure, largely due to a study that alleged online classifieds served as a platform for rapidly increasing underage prostitution and trafficking of women against their will.

Now, Nick Pinto of the Village Voice reports, and anti-sex trafficking experts agree, the study is a load of bad science hokum, leading to tax dollars diverted to a crisis that may or may not exist.

The study, commissioned by the Women's Funding Network and conducted by the Schapiro Group — a consulting group whose "members weren't academic researchers, and had no prior experience studying prostitution," got its numbers by guessing ages of people in the photos that accompanied adult services ads. ...............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://digitallife.today.com/_news/2011/03/25/6343842-village-voice-craigslist-sex-trafficking-scandal-based-on-bogus-stats