Rep. Rick Boucher, (D-Va.) has been unsuccessfully pushing for Internet privacy legislation for a very long time. In 1999, he proposed a bill that would give regulators more power over commercial Web sites, and he cosponsored the Consumer Privacy Protection Act in 2005. His current effort, co-sponsored by Republican Cliff Stearns, about data collection, has DC in arms. Liberal special interest groups announced they were "disappointed" that Boucher didn't slap more regulations on Internet businesses. Free-market think tanks panned it for going too far. And industry groups like the Interactive Advertising Bureau said it was far too broad …

An advertising watchdog on Tuesday asked Time Warner Cable Inc. and Cox Communications Inc. to drop claims that they run fiber-optic networks. Verizon, which operates a rival television and Internet services using fiber optics, complained to the National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus. The NAD said both cable TV companies describe their networks as "fiber-optic" in their ads, referring to networks that include both fiber and traditional, coaxial copper cable. The companies described their networks as "hybrid fiber coax" in regulatory filings, but a purely fiber-optic network transmits data faster and has greater capacity …

Nielsen has acquired video analytics company GlanceGuide. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. GlanceGuide's analytics and measurements provide insights into how consumers interact with the video they watch online. GlanceGuide's analytics are already integrated into Nielsen's online video measurement tools to "deliver more actionable daily insights to media publishers, agencies and advertisers." The online video ad industry will now get enanced video metrics, which deliver key measures like viewing duration, video visibility, and audio volume to provide a composite "score" for a piece of video content or advertising.

The weekly New York Observer is offering bonuses to print reporters that increase Web popularity and traffic. It does not apply to Web employees of the paper. There are five categories, each with their own cash bonus, and each category will have a first and a second place award each month. The trial period is for May, June and July. The categories are: pageviews, number of posts, new Twitter followers, number of comments and external pickups. The first place will pay $500. The second place will pay $300. There is a $2,500 cap per employee in total awards. …

The advocacy group Competitive Enterprise Institute filed a formal complaint with the Federal Trade Commission, charging General Motors with deceptive advertising. CEI claims GM misled the public when it said in a national TV ad it has paid back its Troubled Assets Relief Program bailout loan from the government. The spot, which was created by McCann Erickson, Detroit, ended its run last week, reports Ad Age.  Critics argue the ad is disingenuous -- the repayment was financed from another TARP bailout, not actual GM profits. GM has repaid only a fraction of those funds -- barely 10%. Moreover, GM …

Sources close to Charlie Sheen's negotiations with Warner Bros. TV are "cautiously optimistic" that the two sides will hammer out a new deal that would keep the troubled star on CBS' hit "Two and a Half Men" for two more seasons, matching the length of the actor's contract with the length of CBS' pickup for the show. Indications are that both sides want to make a deal. Although he has declared publicly that he is ready to move on in his career and leave "Men" behind, sources say Sheen wants to return to the show. TMZ is reporting …

In Albany, Syracuse, Rochester and other areas of upstate New York, Time Warner Cable's disparate local news channels all have a new name: Your News Now. The name underscores that they are increasingly sharing segments and production staff members. NY1, in New York City, is the company's only channel in the state not affected by the name change. Time Warner Cable is now taking the name beyond New York, too, first by rebranding News 8 Austin in Texas. A consistent name lets the company save money on graphics and marketing. It encourages more statewide advertising sales. And it …

A new "60 Minutes"/Vanity Fair poll suggests that the majority of the 1,026 adult respondents said they find CNN and Fox News to be "more trustworthy" than a couple of major newspapers and the news divisions at the broadcast networks. (MSNBC was not included in the mix.) 32% picked CNN as the most trustworthy news source, with 29% chose Fox. Breaking down the numbers along party lines, it seems that half of those who identify as Republicans chose Fox, while 46% of Democrats went with CNN. The broadcast networks were described as "most trustworthy" by just 13% of respondents, …

Most banner ads are inserted into Web pages regardless of content, but recently Ford worked with Google to begin running display ads that varied depending on the nature of the site. Ford Drive One ads appear on the Google Content Network of 1 million publishers. Depending on the context of the Web site, the most relevant Ford content is pulled and displayed in the ad unit, using video from the Ford YouTube channel and information from Ford Web sites thefordstory.com and fordvehicles.com. For instance, a site that discusses green issues would highlight Ford's hybrid models. A tech site …

TiVo hasn't hurt television advertising or changed consumers' buying behavior, reports a Duke University researcher. Some predicted that TiVo and other digital video recorders, or DVRs, which record television programs and allow viewers to easily fast-forward and rewind, would kill television commercials. But Triangle Business Journal says research indicates skipping through ads has no impact on buying behavior.   Carl Mela, a professor in Duke's Fuqua School of Business, says about 95% of people still watch television live and cannot fast forward through the commercials. Even those without a DVR can skip commercials by using the breaks for other …