AVWatch: Antonio Villaraigosa Villarnovela; reporter shoved; Mirthala suspended

The Villarnovela starring Hillary Clinton campaign co-chair, Los Angeles mayor, and former MEChA leader Antonio Villaraigosa continues with at least two new episodes:

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa today sought to put the scandal surrounding his personal life behind him, one day after the Telemundo network suspended his girlfriend, newscaster Mirthala Salinas, for covering the mayor while they were romantically involved... But a Villaraigosa news conference at the Port of Los Angeles ended chaotically, with a port police sergeant shoving a television reporter against a cargo container as she attempted to pursue the mayor.

You can see a video of the reporter being shoved here. To make it even worse, she's from a Spanish-language station:

The director of media relations for the Port of Los Angeles later issued a statement expressing "regret that this incident occurred" and saying the matter "is being investigated." Port police "intervened to deny access" when the mayor entered a restricted area and reporters tried to follow, according to the statement.

Hillary Clinton could not be reached for comment, because I didn't try. Tony Villar's political future was reportedly spotted applying for a job as a greeter at WalMart.

Los_Angeles · Fri, 08/03/2007 - 15:09 · · Importance: 1