The New York Times pluralizes video and compact discs as *DVD's* and *CD's*
This doesn't look like proper usage to me. It is akin to homeowners
whose mailboxes display *The Smith's*. But who am I to question the
majestic NYT's?
Is there a single preferred usage or is it whatever pleases you?

Hello monroe22-ga!

I so enjoy questions like yours, so thank you for posting such an
interesting question! I, too, pick up on these kinds of things and
wonder about correct usage. I can see why you?re especially intrigued
when the grammar rule in question is being used by a reputable
publication such as ?The New York Times.?

The short answer is that either is acceptable, but the ?-?s? is
quickly going out of style. The more preferred usage is ?-s? alone (no
apostrophe). Therefore, the more preferred usage in your example is
?DVDs? rather than ?DVD?s? and ?CDs? rather than ?CD?s? (and ?The
Smiths? rather than ?The Smith?s? for that matter).

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

From Bartleby.com (an online collection of classic and contemporary
reference books), the following is quoted from ?The American HeritageŽ
Book of English Usage,? Copyright 1996, Houghton Mifflin Company:

?Usage with regard to forming the plurals of letters, numbers, and
abbreviations varies somewhat. In some cases you have a choice between
adding -s or -?s, although the trend is increasingly to add -s alone:
three As or three A?s; the ABCs or the ABC?s; the 1900s or the 1900?s;
PhDs or PhD?s; several IOUs or several IOU?s. With lowercase letters,
symbols, abbreviations with periods, and in cases where confusion
might arise without an apostrophe, use -?s to form the plural: p?s and
q?s; +?s; -?s; M.A.?s; A?s and I?s; 2?s. Mainly your goal is to be as
clear as possible and avoid confusion.?

http://www.bartleby.com/64/pages/page240.html

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Wikipedia is an online encyclopedia written by a collaboration of
readers. The article discussing Acronyms cites "Fowler's Modern
English Usage as a primary source" and addresses this topic of
apostrophe use:

?The plurals of acronyms (where relevant--there are many lasers, but
only one NATO) are formed in the same way as the plural of other
English words: that is, by simply appending an s. Thus, ?CDs?, not
?CD's?.?

http://en2.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acronym

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

There are a variety of writing handbooks available to help people
understand how to properly use punctuation (as well as other elements
of writing). I?ve got an undergraduate degree in the Humanities and a
graduate degree in the Social Sciences. I had to do a lot of writing
for both. In the Humanities, one usually follows the MLA (Modern
Language Association) style. In the Social Sciences, one often follows
the APA (American Psychological Association) style. We own both
handbooks, and I used both as a reference to answer your question. I
prefer MLA to APA by far, but that?s another story. For rules of
punctuation, the books are a great deal similar in approach and rules.

From the "MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers" (4th ed. p.55):

"Do not use an apostrophe to form the plural of an abbreviation or a number."

And from the "Publication Manual of the American Psychological
Association" (4th ed. p. 89):

"To form the plural of most abbreviations and statistical symbols, add
s alone, without an apostrophe."

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

During my research, I also referenced a number of sites for
organizations that accept submissions for their independent
publications and every one that I checked (and I checked quite a few)
preferred NOT using the apostrophe in these cases. Not a one preferred
the ?-?s? over the ?-s.?

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

And, by the way, for more confirmation about your reference to
homeowners and mailbox displays, I also found this (again from
Bartleby.com):

?The plural of most nouns is formed by adding -s to the singular:
apple, apples; bell, bells; epoch, epochs; grief, griefs; law, laws;
month, months; pear, pears; shade, shades; George, Georges; the
Walkers; the Romanos.?

http://www.bartleby.com/64/81.html

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Thank you again for an interesting question! I truly enjoy researching
different grammar rules (it?s the ?nerd? in me!) and your question is
no exception. By the way, my spell checker had a field day with this
answer (needs an apostrophe, doesn't need an apostrophe, needs an
apostrophe . . . )! I was hoping to be able to tell you that alerting
?The New York Times? to grammar errors and preferences such as this
one results in their granting you a sum of money or some other prize,
but a search on their site reveals no such program. So, I hope that my
answer suffices in at least satisfying your intelligent curiosity.
Should you need further clarification, please let me know how I can
help.  Happy Holiday?s!

(Just kidding.) Happy Holidays!

Sincerely,
Boquinha-ga

Search terms used: 
apostrophe plural usage
acronym plural

Dear boquinha-ga: Excellent answer! Also, being particular about
precision in grammar isn't nerdy...it's admirable

Hello monroe22-ga!

Thank you so much for the 5-star rating and also for your kind words!
I take them to heart.

Warmest wishes,
Boquinha-ga

I seldom use an apostrophe when forming a plural. As a staunch
stick-in-the-mud member of the Language Police, I bristle when I see
this sort of thing.

One of the rare instances where I do this is when referring to a group
of Internet private messages (or a group of prime ministers) as PM's.
If I pluralize PM as PMs, I am concerned that the reader will think of
premenstrual syndrome.

According to the New York Times Manual of Style and Usage: 

Many publications omit such apostrophes, but they are needed to make
The Time's all-cap headlines intelligible and are therefore used
throughout the paper for consitency.