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NEW YORK (AP) -- A CBS News employee has pleaded not guilty to trying to blackmail David Letterman for $2 million in a plot that spurred the TV host to acknowledge sexual relationships with female staffers on his show.
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Robert J. Halderman entered his plea as he was arraigned on an attempted grand larceny charge Friday in a Manhattan court.
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Prosecutors say Halderman demanded $2 million last month in exchange for not releasing information that would ruin Letterman's reputation. Letterman told millions of viewers on his show Thursday the threat concerned sexual liaisons with women who work for him.
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Authorities say the plot prompted a sting operation at a posh New York hotel, with Letterman's lawyer secretly recording Halderman's threats.
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Halderman is a producer for the true-crime show "48 Hours."
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(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press.? All Rights Reserved.)
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