Ch. 4 goes sour on

PCRM anti-milk adCh. 4 spiked an anti-dairy ad that was supposed to air last Tuesday.

The ad, sponsored by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, features a New Jersey doctor citing research that links dairy consumption to the risk of prostate cancer.

“We decided we weren’t going to run the ads . . . because we felt there are divergent opinions about this being a critical health issue,” says a Ch. 4 spokesman. “We felt that a 30-second spot was not the proper place for this type of discussion.”

PCRM, based in Washington, is a nonprofit group that promotes a dairy-free vegetarian diet.

“WNBC did agree to run the ads initially and they took our check,” says Dr. Neal Barnard, president of PCRM. “But on Monday they said it was an issue and a controversy.

“I think it’s a terrible decision,” he says. “We’re not talking about acne or life insurance or pizza – prostate cancer is something that kills people.

“Milk is clearly not the only contributor to prostate cancer, but it is a significant contributor.”

PCRM’s ad campaign follows on the heels of ads which showed Mayor Giuliani with a milk moustache over the words, “Got prostate cancer?” The PCRM ads do not mention Giuliani.

Barnard says PCRM will shop around for another station here.

TNT’s ‘Bull’ hits the bottle on water scare

If timing is everything, TNT’s “Bull” is way ahead of the curve.

Or not.

In the Oct. 3 episode, “Sins of the Father” (10 p.m.), Marissa Rufo (Alicia Coppola) is approached by a venture capitalist seeking funds to back a bottled-water boutique selling only, well, bottled water.

How timely is this in light of the bottled water scare that’s currently gripping Manhattan and the surrounding boroughs?

Marissa thinks the guy is crazy, but after talking it over with her colleagues, decides it’s a good risk – and the guy ends up a millionaire by episode’s end. Only on television.

Ryan O’Neal also guest-stars as Ditto’s (George Newbern) long-last dad, Bobby Roberts.

TNT recently ordered more episodes of “Bull,” based around a Wall Street brokerage house.

This just in . . .

Last Thursday’s episode of Ch. 41’s “Por Tu Amor” (“For Your Love”) notched 385,000 households from 7 to 8 p.m. – a new ratings record for the Univision station.

GOP presidential candidate George W. Bush drops by Thursday’s “Live with Regis.”