Jul 3, 2007 9:20 pm US/Pacific
Mayor's Girlfriend Reported On His Marital Woes
LOS ANGELES (CBS) ―
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Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa admitted to an affair with Telemundo Anchorwoman Mirthala Salinas.
CBS
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Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
AP
Telemundo anchor Mirthala Salinas reported on Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's separation from his wife while carrying on a romantic relationship with him, and two journalism scholars said Tuesday her actions created the definite perception of a conflict of interest.
Salinas opened KVEA/Channel 52's evening telecast on June 8 by referring to the mayor's split from Corina Villaraigosa as a "political scandal."
"The rumors are true," Salinas said in Spanish. "Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa confirmed today that he is separating from his wife, Corina, after more than 20 years of marriage."
Now, with Villaraigosa confirming that he was involved in a romantic relationship with Salinas, the Telemundo anchor is mired in a scandal of her own.
"It's clearly very, very dicey ethical territory when a journalist develops a personal relationship with a government official," said Bob Steele, the senior ethics faculty member at the Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Fla.
"There are ethical problems of Salinas reading any stories about the mayor in her role as an anchor or an on-air reporter," Steele said. "To do so compromises not just her journalistic credibility, but the integrity of the Telemundo station."
Michael Parks, director of USC's Annenberg School for Communication and former editor of the Los Angeles Times, said reporters should "always recuse themselves if there is any personal involvement [with their subject."]
(© 2007 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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