The Inside Story on the Christie Brinkley Divorce

This is a partial transcript from "The O'Reilly Factor," July 18, 2006, that has been edited for clarity.

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BILL O'REILLY, HOST: "Back of the Book" segment tonight, supermodel Christie Brinkley has been embarrassed by her fourth husband, architect Peter Cook, who apparently had an affair with a 19-year-old girl named Diana Bianchi. The woman spoke exclusively with Rosanna Scotto, who anchors FOX 5 News here in New York City.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DIANA BIANCHI, ALLEGED MISTRESS: You know, he would make advances verbally towards me first, and then I guess it just, you know, escalated into something that I didn't really expect. Like I never expected that he would take it to a different level. Even though I had people in my ear telling me different. But it's like, I don't know. I guess I just have — I always — I'm a little too trusting sometimes.

ROSANNA SCOTTO, FOX 5 NEWS ANCHOR: How do you feel about him?

BIANCHI: I just regret a lot. I didn't — I didn't want this to happen at all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'REILLY: With us now from the FOX 5 studios is Ms. Scotto, and here in our studio attorney Mercedes Colwin.

Rosanna, you know, I mean, a woman took a lot of money from the guy, got a car. She's 18 when this all kicked into high gear. Is she a victim? I mean, is she trying to portray herself as a victim?

SCOTTO: She never really used the word "victim." What she said right now is that she's scared. And I think she's scared because the media is camped out outside of her door.

O'REILLY: Absolutely.

SCOTTO: And she couldn't leave her home the whole weekend. And I also think, Bill, she's 19 years old. The reality of what took place the last year has finally hit her.

O'REILLY: But why would she want to go on television in front of the nation and talk about this? I mean, you know, if I were her parents — I guess she lives at home, correct?

SCOTTO: She does. In fact, her parents encouraged her to speak out.

O'REILLY: Why?

SCOTTO: Because they are hoping that by her speaking out to FOX 5 it will end it.

O'REILLY: What?

SCOTTO: The book is closed, the chapter is closed, she can move on. She wants to be a singer. Now, during the interview, we said let's talk about your singing career.

O'REILLY: She wants to be a singer?

SCOTTO: But she said she didn't want to talk about it. She said she didn't want to mix the two.

O'REILLY: Yes, but Rosanna, you've been around a long time. You know, you know this isn't going away. And if she goes on television and says all this stuff, it just makes it worse, I mean, as far as exposure. What her parents should have done was sent her to Portugal or someplace and got her out of there. And just didn't say anything.

SCOTTO: Well, listen, I don't think the family has the means to send her to Portugal. Her father is a police officer.

O'REILLY: Well, then she could have gotten money from the other guy, who was giving her money anyway.

SCOTTO: Well, you never know what might have taken place. But there was contact. The contact, you know, is over with between her and Peter Cook. OK?

O'REILLY: All right. Now we hear, Mercedes, that this woman may sue this guy, Cook, and for what?

MERCEDES COLWIN, FOX NEWS LEGAL ANALYST: Well, what they are saying is that she's going to sue for sexual harassment. But I think that's going to go on the wayside, because certainly her conduct, she's coming forward with the media, she's saying that she was somehow victimized by all of this.

They had a relationship before she went into and started working for him. The fact that she then became a lover, that doesn't mean that she was victimized in the eyes of the law.

SCOTTO: Bill, Bill...

O'REILLY: Go ahead.

SCOTTO: Her attorney, Joe Tacopina, is saying that the relationship started after she began working with him at the architectural firm.

O'REILLY: OK. But...

COLWIN: But here is the difference, though. If they had a relationship prior to this, that's how the defense attorneys are going come forward. They're going to say they had this relationship prior, and then he worked for him. And then it started to...

O'REILLY: But it went on for so long, Rosanna, and it was a lot of gifts and money changing hands that it seems to me, you know, I don't know. I just see this thing as — first of all, I feel very sorry for Christie Brinkley. Can we all agree with that?

COLWIN: I love Christie Brinkley. In fact, Bill, can I tell you something?

O'REILLY: Go ahead.

SCOTTO: I was at a party with Christie and her husband, Peter Cook, about two or three weeks ago, probably just a few days before this all blew up. And they are, or were, the perfect couple. They walked into the room. Gorgeous. Successful. Sweet. Talked to them for about 15 minutes about raising kids. Really, really lovely. So this obviously was pretty shocking when this all hit the papers.

O'REILLY: And it's awful.

COLWIN: Bill, when this goes to court, though, let's say they bring a lawsuit. If it does, the court is going to say, first of all this is a consensual relationship. She's the age of consent. She's certainly old enough. She accepted all these gifts. This is going to lead the court to say this is not...

O'REILLY: I don't see any legal tort here.

COLWIN: Well, maybe also her attorney wanted to keep her kind of reigned in a little bit because she might be in the middle, if it ever gets to divorce, OK?

O'REILLY: I mean, that's always possible. You have another interview with her tonight? What's that going to be about?

SCOTTO: I have the second part of the interview. She talks about the "L" word, love.

O'REILLY: Right.

SCOTTO: And you'll be very interested to know about how she responds to that. You'll have to watch it here on FOX 5 at 10 p.m. here in New York. Sorry.

O'REILLY: All right. Ladies, thanks very much. We appreciate it. Once again, our condolences to — and you know, there's kids involved here, too.

SCOTTO: That's the sad part.

O'REILLY: Yes, we can't make fun of this because there are children involved, and you know, the press goes wild with all of this stuff and hurts the kids. As I said, I would have sent this woman, this girl, 19, out of the country and just laid low.

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