Man pleads not guilty to Letterman plot

CBS News employee Robert Halderman has pleaded not guilty to trying to blackmail David Letterman for $2m (£1.25m) over his relationships with female members of his staff.

Halderman, also a producer for true-crime show 48 Hours, entered his plea against the charge of attempted grand larceny in a Manhattan court today. His bail has been set at $200,000 (£125,000), The AP reports.

Prosecutors claim that the 51-year-old demanded $2m from Letterman last month in exchange for covering up information that he insisted would ruin the chatshow host's reputation.

Letterman subsequently went public about the affairs on last night's broadcast of his programme.

> Man named in Letterman extortion plot