Former Sen. Brooke mum on reported Barbara Walters affair

NEW YORK (AP) - Former Senator Edward Brooke isn't commenting on whether he had an affair with Barbara Walters in the 1970s.

In an appearance on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" scheduled to air Tuesday, Walters shares details of her relationship with the married Brooke that lasted several years in the 1970s. That's according to excerpts of the show provided to The Associated Press.

Brooke -- who was the first African-American to be popularly elected to the Senate -- says he has had "a lifetime policy and practice" of not discussing his personal life, or the personal lives of others.

Walters tells Oprah that her affair with Brooke, which never before came to light, ended before he lost his bid for a third term in 1978.

She says a friend had warned her that if the affair become public, it could ruin her career as well as Brooke's.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)