Spider-Man's Mission: Save UN

Battered by the oil-for-food scandal and accused of inaction and inefficiency, the United Nations is looking to an unusual ally for help improving its image: Spider-Man. In a novel collaboration, the international body has enlisted Marvel Comics to produce a one-off comic book that will see its cast of superheroes team up with blue-helmeted peacekeepers to fight violence, poverty and disease, reports the Financial Times.

Marvel is doing the work pro bono, and a million US schoolchildren will get free copies. This isn't the first time the American comic industry has been enlisted in a political effort: During World War II, Captain America and Superman beat up Adolf Hitler. If the program is a success, said a UN spokeswoman, the agency hopes to translate the comics and distribute them worldwide. (More United Nations stories.)