The half-hour story of Sandy and Scott Steinpas, and their reunion with Jenny, the daughter they gave up for adoption, aired Monday night and it was hard to watch without shedding a tear.

I told you last week about the Brookfield couple's participation in the premiere of ABC's "Find My Family." But I hadn't seen the show in advance. It was clear they'd be reunited with their now-grown daughter. In their conversation, neither was shy about admitting that.

As the story unfolded Monday, "Find My Family" demonstrated the raw emotional power of such "reality" TV.

In this situation, both birth parents and birth daughter were interested in meeting each other. That isn't always the case.

And from what we we saw of their meeting -- at a somewhat cheesy "family tree" where, apparently all the show's reunions will take place -- it was a happy meeting. A follow-up picnic with the Steinpas clan and Jenny's family was also warm and upbeat.

Real family dramas are far more complex than a half-hour of network television can portray. But Monday's premiere of "Find My Family" was as emotional a TV show as you're likely to find, with a truly happy ending.

And there's nothing wrong with that, especially in the days before Thanksgiving.

You can watch the full episode here.

That Jessica McBride mess: Former reporter and failed radio talker Jessica McBride has gotten herself all tangled up in a mess.

For the second time, her husband, former Waukesha County district attorney Paul Bucher, whom she used to cover as a reporter, has filed for divorce. The reason, of course, is her affair with Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn, the subject of a glowing profile written by McBride for Milwaukee Magazine. Meanwhile, McBride is still teaching journalism at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Now she writes in the Waukesha Freeman: "This should never have been a story in the first place, back in June."

Lou Dobbs for president: Former CNN commentator Lou Dobbs told Washington, D.C.'s WTOP-AM is talking about running for president.

"It's one of the discussions that we're having about politics," he said. "For the first time I'm actually listening to some people about politics."

Here's the interview.

On TV: Hip surgery is forcing Regis Philbin from "Live with Regis and Kelly" starting Dec. 1 is taking a leave of absence for hip-replacement surgery. He says he'll be back "next year," but there's no firm date for his return. Philbin is 78 and his potentially long absence has to raise questions about the successful syndicated morning show.

• That production shutdown on the set of ABC's "Cougar Town" is apparently over, with work resuming next Monday. We still don't know what Courteney Cox's "family issue" was.
• Production also has been temporarily stopped on ABC's "FlashForward," to "boost" the show's writing, Variety reports. Ratings have been slipping.
• The TV Guide Channel has picked up rights to the British-made "I Dreamed a Dream: The Susan Boyle Story," to debut Dec. 13. Simon Cowell's production company is a participant in the show.
• Sunday night's "American Music Awards" pulled in 14.2 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research numbers. NBC's "Sunday Night Football" still beat that healthy number, with 15.1 million viewers.

The final "V" of 2009: Tonight's episode of ABC's sci-fi drama "V," (7 p.m. on Channel 12) is just the fourth installment of the saga of aliens arriving on earth, but it's the final show of the year and leads into the season finale of "Dancing with the Stars."

ABC has said all along that it wouldn't return until March, after viewing settles down, following NBC's coverage of the Winter Olympics.

The production team has changed, so it's not clear how different "V" will be when it returns. But here's an advance look at tonight's show.