As a woman stands trial in the US charged with bullying a girl through MySpace, the potential dangers of social networking sites are again under scrutiny.

BBC News website readers all over the world have been sending their reactions to the election of Barack Obama as the new US president.

A workman who rifled through his female customers' drawers and stole their underwear is given a suspended jail sentence.

Sir Alex Ferguson says he "cannot believe" Saturday's Premier League opponents Hull are above his Man Utd side in the table.

Meet Mary Ann Day from our panel of families charting how the economic squeeze is affecting them

A South African cartoonist at the centre of a row over his drawing of ANC leader Jacob Zuma admits it is "derogatory".

On a packed commuter train, passengers rarely give their fellow travellers more than a passing glance. But Alison Rich is not just another face in the crowd - what is the impact of facial disfigurement on an otherwise normal life?

A Marks & Spencer worker is sacked after telling the media that the retailer planned to cut redundancy pay to staff.

A handful of violent and degrading attacks on disabled people have provoked outrage among the press and public. But are they isolated cases or one end of a spectrum of intimidation and violence that many disabled people encounter?

A look at how bookmakers come up with the betting odds for Big Brother evictions.

Ben Stiller's new film Tropic Thunder upsets groups representing the disabled for including "derogatory words".

Media regulator Ofcom will not punish ITV after sports commentator Martin Brundle used the word "pikey".

Four Hamas militants and a five-year-old girl die in an explosion targeting a car on Gaza City's beachfront, medics say.

Albinos in Tanzania are still targeted for body parts used in witchcraft, despite a government's crackdown on the practice, Karen Allen says.

People should stop using the word chav because it is 'deeply offensive' to the lower classes, a left-wing think tank has suggested.

A hospital apologises to a diabetic patient after he overhears medical staff insulting him about his weight.

Formula One commentator Martin Brundle is being investigated by media watchdog Ofcom after using the term "pikeys" in a television broadcast. What is the word's origin and how offensive is it?

Sharon Osbourne announces she is stepping down as a judge on The X Factor after four series.

Ronald de Boer tells BBC Sport that Dutch footballers lack the pride needed to succeed on the international stage.

Organisers of the Beijing Olympics warn foreign visitors against any political activism during the Games.