RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:
Good morning. I'm Renee Montagne. Who would've thought back when Times Square was the seediest of the mean streets of New York, cartoon characters would one day be its most menacing element? Complaints against the performers dressed up as, say, Minnie Mouse or Batman, have ranged from hostile hustling of tourists to nudity to Batman assaulting a cop. Fed up, a new city law aims to keep them in designated zones so now the only thing blocking the sidewalk will be the tourists themselves. It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.