NAMES IN THE NEWS : Mixed Review for Murphy Brown

CBS’s Murphy Brown, the television newswoman portrayed by Candice Bergen in the hit show of the same name, isn’t far off the mark but she needs to work harder, her real-life counterparts say.

“Her personal life is fairly apropos of most women in the TV business. We spend so much time working that by the time we get home, there’s not much left for anything else,” said NBC “Today” show news anchor Deborah Norville in response to a survey by TV Guide.

The portrayal of a “blond TV newswoman who’s as tough as nails” is a breath of fresh reality, said Faith Daniels of “CBS This Morning.” “There’s always some line you hear on the show and then use. For weeks after Murphy used it, we went around at ‘This Morning’ saying, ‘Lighten up. It’s only morning TV.’ ”

But her professional life isn’t all that tough, according to a couple of pros quoted in the magazine’s Dec. 23 issue.

“Professionally, Murphy’s probably a better interviewer than many women on TV. She also gets better answers,” said Linda Ellerbee, former ABC and NBC news anchor, CNN commentator and now independent producer. “As for her easy access to the high and mighty, I don’t have that sort of access, but Barbara Walters does.”

Murphy’s “personal life is more on the mark than the professional part,” said Lifetime’s Jane Wallace. “Most TV journalists do much more work than Murphy.”