THE TWITCHING POINT - Madison Avenue has always been a touchy/feely kind of place. Lately it's become focused more on touch.

TO HELP THE TASK FORCE, WE'D LIKE TO ASK THE SOURCE (YOU) -- If you're anything like us, you've been chomping at the bit as the debate over local people meters raged in the media, among civil rights groups, and ultimately, on Capitol Hill. Well, now's your chance to be heard in a way that could actually influence the outcome of that debate.

LET'S SEE IF WE HAVE THIS STRAIGHT - CBS News, an organization some still believe to be among journalism's best, has retained a former state attorney general to investigate a story by its premiere investigative news team, "60 Minutes," which cited false records in its investigation of President George W. Bush's military career.

REAL NIELSEN RANTS -- The Riff would like to take this opportunity to officially announce a name change. From this moment on, we will no longer be known as "Real Media Riffs" (as if we've ever had any fake ones?).

TRUTH, JUSTICE, AND THE NIELSEN WAY - Even when all the facts are clear and above board, truth always ends up being something of a subjective process. And don't even get us started about justice. As for Nielsen, let's get some of the facts clear.

HEAVY MEDDLE: WEIGHING IN ON WEB REACH - Anyone notice the surprising revelation in the research released earlier this week by DoubleClick and comScore Media Metrix? The team at Carat Insight did. The research, which purports to be the first ever audience accumulation study showing how websites build user reach over time, was touted as a breakthrough that would enable interactive agencies to apply reach-based planning approaches to their Internet buys, and which would allow full-service media shops to at least think about, if not actually plan the reach capacity of online media vs.

GOT MILK? NAH, JUST A PIECE OF PETER GARDINER - We've thought of some fairly odd things during our years in the media business, but never did we imagine taking a slice out of Peter Gardiner, much less having a bite. As it turns out, Gardiner was quite delicious.

'WHAT IS MEDIA, ANYWAY?' -- When David Cohen posed that question to an auditorium full of ad execs Monday morning he, of course, meant it in a good way. Certainly, Cohen, who heads up interactive and integrated media operations for Universal McCann, was not conceding any ignorance on the topic.

A DERMA FRESH START - While ad agencies often make Fountain of Youth claims for their clients' products, AdSouth Partners has decided to go them one better, buying the fountain and marketing it on its own behalf. Just the other day, the Boca Raton, Fl.

2005, A GREEK TRAGEDY - Talk about your quadrennial year in ad spending hangovers. As U.