"She's not a cartoon character; she's an avatar."

"CSI: NY" is diving into Second LIfe. CBS skein's Oct. 24 seg, "Down the Rabbit Hole," will find Gary Sinise's stern-faced Mac diving into the virtual world of avatars and alterna-life stories to help solve -- what else? -- a murder case.

I'm guessing that "CSI" guy Anthony Zuiker is way into the Second Life thing. (Some would say he's already living in an alterna-reality, in a charming way).

Zuiker's planning to hold a conference call with journos on Oct. 17 just to talk up this episode.  Click here for a clip.