Florida starts ad campaign (above) to reassure tourists as BP admits it's siphoning less oil than estimated (and may be pushed aside by US gov't on Gulf Oil clean-up operation). A fake Twitter feed for BP Global PR isn't helping the oil giant's cause.

British Airways crew begin a five-day strike, leading to cancelled flights. BA, meanwhile, sponsors mobile news app.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg pledges easier privacy in a Washington Post column as rivals see opportunity.

Hollywood eyes quicker TV premieres via Time Warner Cable and other US operators.

Google TV gets a warm welcome from advertisers.

Zappos-owned 6pm.com posts wrong prices but honors them, losing $1.6 million as a result.Continue reading...

P&G seeks to regain trust of moms by tapping mommy bloggers to defend Pampers Dry Max.

BP's MD Bo Dudley hopes to shut off leak by next week, continues efforts and challenges estimates as oil spill advances.

British Airways is having a tough year.

Dish Network threatens to launch rival to Weather Channel in US.

Facebook and MySpace confront privacy loophole.

Fox News targets Latinos with new online campaign.

Jeep Grand Cherokee relaunches today as "symbol of the new Chrysler."Continue reading...

US broadcast TV networks' upfront presentations to advertisers kicked off today in New York. Fox and NBC (whose new series include Outsourced, above) announced their fall schedules while CBS, which presents Wednesday, confirmed some new additions to its lineup. Law & Order creator Dick Wolf, attending NBC's upfront, said he's looking for a new TV home for his now-cancelled flagship series. 

Washington is unimpressed by BP's headway in capturing about one-fifth of oil spilled, and just wants the leak permanently sealed and the Gulf cleaned up.

British Airways won a court injunction to stop cabin crew from going on strike.

Chase Vodka, an English brand, has been voted the world's best vodka.

Chrysler has paid back almost half of its $4 billion bailout loan from the US government.Continue reading...

Carlsberg's new World Cup spot (above) features soccer legends.

BMW prototype sparks bomb scare in Manhattan as global sales increase.

Borders unveils Kobo e-reader.

Smirnoff tops power 100 ranking of alcohol brands.

Uniqlo dubbed New York's "hippest retailer."

IBM acquires Cast Iron systems for cloud capabilities.

JetBlue unveils new "digital brand experience" campaign.Continue reading...

The big airline news this week may have been the United-Continental merger, which will result in the largest airline in the United States. But there's another airline merger that's creating an interesting flap in Europe.

The recently announced union of the UK's British Airways and Spain's Iberia is spawning a new holding company with the innocuous name of International Airlines. However, the new company is being incorporated in Spain with a Madrid address. Technically, that means the new airline is Spanish.

Why is that a problem? Because normally, it would mean British Airways would be de-listed from the FTSE 100, the prestigious European stock listing not unlike the S&P 500 in the U.S. And according to FTSE rules, the company is Spanish, not British.Continue reading...

Coca-Cola kicks off FIFA World Cup campaign (above).

Anheuser-Busch the next official beer of the NFL?

BP boss Tony Hayward meets with US Congress as value drops $23 billion.

British Airways, “British enough”?

BMW sales soar, from Minis to Rolls-Royce sedans.

Chrysler introduces sales incentives.

Domino's ad blitz pays off.

Facebook defends "open privacy" policy.Continue reading...

Green marketing is in the spotlight ahead of Earth Day on Thursday; Earth Day's 2010 sponsors include P&G, Siemens, Wells Fargo, UPS, and Philips. [Brandweek | TreeHugger]

Toyota is set to agree to a $16.4 million fine today for not telling U.S. officials about a pedal defect. On Friday, the automaker recalled 600,000 minivans over rust problems, and confirmed safety concerns with its Lexus GX 460 model SUV. [AP | USA Today]

KLM, Lufthansa, and British Airways test flights are giving hope to the millions of passengers grounded by Iceland's volcanic ash. European transport ministers meet today to discuss resuming air travel. Air France, meanwhile, appears to be weathering the disruption. [BBC | NYT | CNN | Businessweek]

American, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, US Airways and JetBlue won't charge for carry-on luggage. [AP]

GM took church-goers for a Sunday drive yesterday. [Detroit Free Press]

ESPN seeks to dominate the sports circuit by purchasing NCAA basketball. [Business Insider]Continue reading...

Heineken looks to brew a comeback. [AdAge]

British Airways takes tough stance on Union. [The Guardian]

Facebook considers revising privacy policy. [Mashable]

Arm & Hammer launches new gel detergent. [brandweek]

Sarah Palin brings personal brand to TV. [LA Times]