Mayor Villaraigosa bristled at the question, but replied that his girlfriend of more than a year, newscaster Mirthala Salinas, is not pregnant. That had been the rumor in political and media circles for several week, to the degree that staffers at the NBC studios in Burbank have been eyeing Salinas for outward signs of pregnancy. She anchors and reports at NBC-owned Telemundo, where she mentioned the mayor's separation from his wife on a recent newscast. From the LAT:

Asked today whether Salinas -- now an evening anchor for Telemundo, Channel 52 -- is pregnant, Villaraigosa said: "I can tell you emphatically that that question is outrageous and the answer is no, she is not pregnant."

On June 8, Salinas opened Telemundo's newscast with a report about Villaraigosa confirming that he and his wife were separating.

"The rumors were 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."

Villaraigosa said he saw no journalistic conflict in Salinas dating him while she was covering him. He said that Salinas, whom he called a "consummate journalistic professional," decided about a year ago that "our friendship had grown to a point where it was necessary to inform her management that she shouldn't cover me. She did that. And they agreed."

The Times also posted an abbreviated Steve Lopez column that says, "Stay tuned, L.A. The summer of love is hot and getting hotter." Plus, here's video from NBC4 of Villariagosa speaking. He calls Salinas a "consummate journalistic professional" and claims that his love life is a private matter, but I wonder how many people are buying that.