life former White House press  secretary Dee Dee Myers (qv) (a consultant on the show), revealed  that the relationship between press secretary C.J. Cregg and  reporter Danny Concannon was based upon her own relationship with  and eventual marriage to former New York Times White House  correspondent Todd Purdum, although unlike C.J. and Danny, Meyers  and Purdum never dated until after Myers left the White House. The  same article also revealed that Josh and Donnas relationship was  also based upon real White House staffers, albeit ones who never  dated.