CBS producer charged for blackmail

A producer associated with the CBS news network has been charged in the US for an alleged plot to blackmail talk show host David Letterman, over sexual relationships he had with female staff members.

Authorities in New York say CBS employee Robert Joe Halderman, was arrested after an undercover sting operation.

Letterman confessed during a recording of his show, broadcast by CBS, that he had had sex with female colleagues.

He said a man had threatened to expose the relationships unless a payment of $2 million was made.

Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau, said Mr Halderman, a producer for the real-life crime show 48 Hours, had been arrested yesterday.

He was indicted on one count of first-degree grand larceny, an offence punishable by a prison term of five to 15 years.