CBS reporter explains her slurred, gibberish Grammy segment

CBS

TV reporter Serene Branson opened up about her garbled tv report after the Grammys on CBS' 'The Early Show' on Friday.

The Los Angeles TV reporter who gained national attention after delivering a slurred, gibberish-laden live broadcast Sunday after the Grammys is finally speaking out about her bizarre episode

Serene Branson said she was "terrified" during the nightmarish 10-second report because she knew what she wanted to say, "but the words were not there for me."

The reporter's doctor announced Wednesday that Branson's bout of babbling was caused by a complex migraine -- not a stroke, as some experts had speculated.

"I knew something wasn't right as soon as I opened my mouth," the KCBS-TV reporter said in an interview Friday on "The Early Show."

"I hadn't been feeling well a little bit before the live shot. I had a headache, my vision was very blurry. I knew something wasn't right, but I just thought I was tired. So when I opened my mouth, I thought, 'This is more than just being tired. Something is terribly wrong.' I wanted to say, 'Lady Antebellum swept the Grammys.' And I could think of the words, but I could not-- they weren't coming out properly."

Kerry Maller, a KCBS producer who was on location with Branson, said after the station cut away from the live shot, the two-time Emmy nominee immediately "dropped the microphone and got very wobbly."

Branson recalled,� "My cheek went numb, my hand went numb, my right hand went numb and I started to cry. I was scared. I didn't know what had gone on, and I was embarrassed and fearful."

She was examined by paramedics and recovered at home. Branson returned to the newsroom on Thursday.

Branson said that while she's had headaches before, she never had a migraine like the one she experienced. She later found out that her mother experienced four or five intense migraines, a condition that's genetic, when she was younger.

While most people who suffer from migraines don't have any warning, 20% to 30% experience sensations, like seeing flashes of light before or during a migraine attack.

"A migraine is not just a headache. It's a complicated brain event," UCLA neurologist Dr. Andrew Charles, who examined Branson, explained.

During an appearance on CBS' "The Talk" Friday afternoon Branson dispelled rumors that she was on drugs or alcohol during the incoherent appearance.

"Absolutely not," said Branson, who said she had worked a 12-hour day.

"It was a medical condition. It was out of my control."

ashahid@nydailynews.com

With News Wire Services

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