Frank Bruni, who has been a writer for The New York Times since 1995, was named an Op-Ed columnist there. Bruni will also be the first gay columnist at the Times, writes Fishbowl's Chris O'Shea (but we'd qualify it to say, the "first openly gay columnist"-- ya never know).

Andy Sareyan, who had been Meredith's chief brand officer and president for consumer brands, including such major magazines as the Ladies' Home Journal, Family Circle and Parents, has left the company after a five-year stint there. According to Ad Age, "It's unclear whether Mr. Sareyan has another post lined up."

"Investors... hate the New York Times Company thinking that in our internet age, all newspapers are toast," writes stock analyst Carl Delfeld. "Slow growth, high union wages and painful fixed printing costs complete its bleak prospects." Still, there are at least three reasons to consider investing in the company now, including the fact that "the fee-based website is working well," and "The print side is stable with growth opportunities in media markets," he writes.

Overall, ad spending in traditional media is rebounding a bit from its big plunge of 18.5% in 2009, with spending up 2% in 2010, according to eMarketer. Still, the type of media determines the level of good news in the forecast. TV will fare the best, since "it still takes up more time per day for the average consumer than any other medium," according to RBR.com/TVBR.com. "Radio will hold its own as well."All blue skies for the readers of that Web site, who presumably are in the biz. Not such a happy picture for the print medium, threatened by the …

Ed Martin ranks the major nets' upfront presentations on entertainment and information values -- from highest rated (Fox) to lowest (ABC -- because it "once again put together an event that consisted almost entirely of executives making speeches and introducing clips.") Entertaining read itself.

"Nonsense," says TV by the Numbers' Bill Gorman, responding to last week's Bloomberg piece crediting the large number of new TV shows introduced at the upfronts to the "Netflix affect," which creates more of a market for older shows. "That effect does not extend to shows early in their lifespan," writes Gorman. "In fact, if the 'Netflix effect' were in force for new shows, you'd expect more rookie shows from this season with marginal ratings renewed, and hence fewer new shows introduced next season." Gorman also writes: "The reason that the broadcast nets introduced 39 new programs is …

Variety's Paige Albiniak discusses the murky path ahead for Viacom and News Corp. as heads of both companies, 88 and 80 respectively (that's Rupert Murdoch and Sumner Redstone, of course) decline mention of retirement. "Both patriarchs have muddied the waters by bringing children into their companies even as they have hired strong non-family members as their top execs -- leaving Wall Street watchers to fill in the blanks with speculation," Albiniak writes.

Barnes & Noble's Nook Color, introduced in November, is gaining on its tablet rivals in the magazine field with especially strong sales of women's mags -- including subscriptions. "On the surface, the reason for the strong performance of female-oriented publications on the Nook is relatively straightforward. Generically speaking, the iPad and other tablets are men's toys, while the Nook Color and other e-readers are more popular with women," writes Jeremy W. Peters in The New York Times. But Barnes and Noble also heavily promoted the device to women as well. Credit the Nook's popularity with helping to attract Liberty Media …

Conde Nast has founded Conde Nast Ideactive, a marketing services division that will provide app development, video, web design and social media. By moving beyond ad-page sales for its glossy magazines, Conde joins other media companies aiming to diversify their businesses by becoming marketing partners with advertisers -- including Hearst, which last year purchased the search specialist iCrossing. Those who already advertise in Conde publications will get preferential rates with Ideactive.

It wasn't just the name of the new NBC show -- "The Playboy Club," launching in the fall -- that raised a red flag for The Parents Television Council. The watchdog group is protesting the fact that its s actors were required to sign a contract stipulating that "nudity or simulated sex may be required of cast members," according to The Hill. Such a nudity clause is "virtually unheard of for broadcast television," said PTC President Tim Winter in a statement.