Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa confirmed that he’s dating Telemundo reporter Mirthala Salinas, who announced Villarigosa’s separation from his wife on the air last month.
Villaraigosa confirmed his relationship with Salinas Monday, after the Los Angeles Daily News, which interviewed his mother-in-law about the affair, told the mayor it planned to publish a report about the relationship.
Salinas is a former political reporter who covered Villaraigosa as part of her beat at Telemundo’s Los Angeles station, KVEA-TV.
But Salinas, who now works as an anchor at the station, reported that Villaraigosa had separated from his wife during an on-air report last month, according to AP.
“I first got to know the mayor at a professional level where we went on to become friends. The current relationship grew out of our existing friendship,” Salinas said in a prepared statement, according to AP. “While we are both public figures, I hope that everyone can understand and respect my desire to maintain my privacy when it comes to personal relationships.”
Telemundo and its TV station group are owned by NBC Universal.
