There's a paradox going on in TV sports. No one of course knows what the future media landscape will be maybe as soon next February, and yet content is so coveted, networks are signing rights deals running deep into the next decade.

The swirl of activity in Washington this summer with potentially massive effects on the local station business has been remarkable. So far, the stations are batting .500 with a key at-bat coming. The blitz of activity has been wide-ranging, touching on the stations' two major revenue sources (advertising) and (carriage payments) and involving all three branches of government.

Gannett Broadcasting President Dave Lougee speaks about a certain non-buyer's remorse that can set in during the Olympics. Advertisers in Gannett markets with NBC stations often find themselves entranced by the drama as the Games unfold, but by then the inventory can be all locked up. This year, the 12 Gannett NBC stations have been charged with developing tailored plans to attract more local advertisers for this summer's London Games. At WXIA in Atlanta, part of the initiative starts at the ground floor -- literally.

There's no better way to spend the first Saturday in May than watching the Kentucky Derby in person below the spires at Churchill Downs. Still, a party in the neighbor's backyard is not a bad way to spend Derby day. But, the hoopla can be a bummer for NBC. When everyone gathers around the TV set, the network gets a lot of out-of-home (OOH) viewers not counted in the Nielsen ratings. Arbitron, however, has data that seeks to capture it and shows NBC gained a 34% lift by one metric from OOH numbers for the Derby.

Sony has been airing a trailer for the upcoming "Amazing Spider-Man" film that's action-packed and punctuated by a humorous line from Spidey: "You've found my weakness. It's small knives." But by the time the ad has aired five times in about 40 minutes, a viewer might want to take a freshly sharpened machete to the screen. Thank you, ESPN. The network has been offering a SKIP THIS AD option for video spots running on a section of ESPN.com.

Quite simply, Microsoft is set to launch one of the greatest innovations in TV advertising since Texaco put its name on a variety show with Milton Berle in 1948. No exaggeration. The NUads are not just groundbreaking in what they offer marketers, but viewers are likely to find them - get this - plain fun.

Sure, he might be a diehard A&M Aggie. Or, a UT grad who feels the career services department let him down. Regardless, his Facebook post Monday had some of the volume of a UT pep rally. "What is this 'Longhorn Network' you speak of?" Doug Fullerton wrote.

Based on new research, Democratic and Republican political consultants have to be crestfallen that HBO and Showtime accept no advertising. If their ads look to convert the non-believers, these pay-TV networks might be ideal venues. Buyology, a research firm that uses neuroscience, has found that across a slew of competitive brands, the biggest gap in emotional connection between Democrats and Republicans came in HBO vs. Showtime. Yet, cementing how varied media research can get, a trio of Showtime series - "Shameless," "United States of Tara" and "Californication" - were in the top 20 by one metric with liberal Democrats.

Cranky David Letterman will be happy. Viewers surely will too when Peyton Manning makes a comeback this fall as a member of the Denver Broncos. Forget about on the field as Manning returns after missing all of last season due to injury. It's the prospect of the reemergence of the superstar quarterback in so many ads as that ridiculous, wonderfully self-effacing character that is so welcome.

Thanks largely to NBC's Ted Harbert, networks may push for a currency change bringing more rating points for them to sell in a DVR-expanding landscape. In media-buying argot, he wants to go from C3 as the principal negotiating metric to C7. Is it worth a fight?