Demonstrators carried signs and chanted outside the New York Times Building in Midtown on Saturday to denounce how the newspaper ran full-page BP ads in the wake of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

On Saturday, scientists estimated between 40 million to 109 million gallons of oil had leaked into the Gulf since a drilling rig exploded in April and killed 11 workers.

Protesters said the newspaper should not have run BP's "apology ads" during the failed cleanup efforts.

"BP has spent $50 million on campaign ads for positive [public relations] and we feel that money really needs to be spent on protection. There are still areas out there that have not been destroyed and can still be saved," said organizer Lauren McGowan.

The New York Times did not comment Saturday on the protest.

Protests were also held Saturday in more than 50 cities worldwide.

Also on Saturday, Coast Guard Rear Admiral James A. Watson sent a letter to BP officials ordering the company to expedite the process and pace of the cleanup efforts, and to express concern that the company was not prepared in the event of an equipment failure or problem.

The Coast Guard sent an initial letter to the oil company on Wednesday.

BP responded, saying they should have a new system to trap the oil completed by mid-July. The company claimed the new design would better withstand the force of hurricanes and could capture nearly three million gallons of oil daily when it is built.

The design would require a new containment cap with a tighter seal to be put over the leaking well. A series of pipes and hoses would carry the oil from the cap to floating risers, which would be deep enough in the ocean to escape hurricane damage but shallow enough to allow ships to connect to the flow of oil.