English Speaking Truth?

In TV Times (Sept. 8) “Murphy Brown” producer Diane English, among other broadcast bigwigs, revealed what tickles her remote control. Said English: “When our TV is on--which isn’t that often--we’re either watching CNN or the Discovery Channel.”

Then, in Calendar (Sept. 14), English talked about “Murphy Brown’s” controversial pregnancy cliffhanger. Ultimately, she was asked if she lifted the story line from Lifetime’s “The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd”--a common refrain among critics lately. Her defense? “I don’t get cable where I live,” she said, so she’s never seen the other show. CNN and the Discovery Channel are cable offerings, so was she misquoted or caught?

Also, English said the decision about the pregnancy story line was “made a long time ago, back in the first season.” But she told a different reporter in Calendar (Sept. 18) that the story line was developed in the summer of last year, after the series’ second season. What gives?

John Griffiths, Newport Beach