WCAX reporter Matt Henson pleaded not guilty Monday to charges of lewd and lascivious conduct and committing a prohibited act stemming from a March arrest, according to the Burlington Free Press.

Henson, who is currently suspended from the Burlington CBS affiliate, is accused of groping a female college student in a bar without her consent on two occasions on March 15.

Henson was released on condition that he not contact the student and he not visit the Packing House Bar, the site of the original incident, according to the Burlington Free Press.

Meteorologist Michael Page has joined WVNY-WFFF, the ABC and Fox affiliates in Burlington, Vt.

Page is a recent graduate of Pennsylvania State University. He began at the stations last week.

“I’m so excited to introduce to you, our new meteorologist Michael Page! He is a native New Englander and an avid weather enthusiast,” chief meteorologist Kerrin Jeromin wrote on Facebook Sunday. “Look for Michael on Fox44 and ABC22 Weekends!”

First Lady Michelle Obama described herself as a “busy single mother” during an interview with WCAX anchor Bridget Barry Caswell yesterday.

During an interview about the importance of eating healthy and making healthy foods available to children, the First Lady told the anchor for the Burlington, VT, CBS affiliate, “Believe me, as a busy single mother…or I shouldn’t say single…as a busy mother. Sometimes, you know, when you’ve got the husband who’s President it can feel a little single.” She then added, “But he’s there.”

The First Lady had planted a new spring garden with the help of elementary schoolkids from around the country and was making the local TV rounds as part of an effort to highlight childhood obesity. The President was away on a fundraising swing through California.

TVSpy has reached out to WCAX’s Bridget Barry Caswell for her take. We’ll update you when we hear back.

Nexstar Broadcasting has named Roger Hess vice president and general manager of its newly acquired Burlington, VT, FOX and ABC affiliates WFFF-WVNY effective today.

“As a native New Englander, I am excited to serve the local communities throughout Vermont’s Champlain Valley and Upstate New York’s North Country,” Hess said in a statement. “The hallmark of my 30 years of professional experience in the Hartford and New Haven communities was strong community interaction and service and I am committed to delivering the same to viewers throughout the Burlington and Plattsburgh communities.”

Hess comes to WFFF-WVNY from WTNH-WCTX in the Hartford-New Haven, CT, market. From 1989 until 2012, Hess rose from account executive to director of sales at WTNH after the station merged with WCTX in 2007. Read more

WCAX reporter Matt Henson, 30, has been suspended from the Burlington CBS affiliate after he was arrested early Friday morning for allegedly groping a woman “under her clothing without her consent on two occasions.” The Burlington Free Press has details of the incident:

Police say Henson groped a woman at a Lyndonville bar Thursday night and fought with the bar’s staff. He’s charged with lewd and lascivious conduct, and disorderly conduct.

Police say Henson, 30, of South Burlington groped a woman under her clothing without her consent on two occasions early Friday at the Packing House bar, then followed her outside and “forcibly pinned her against a wall,” the Lyndonville Police Department said in a statement Friday night.

The woman was able to get away, and bouncers restrained Henson until police arrived, according to the statement.

Henson’s blood alcohol content was 0.194 percent, more than twice the legal limit for driving, according to the Free Press. He is scheduled to appear in Vermont Superior Court on April 22.

In a statement, WCAX news director Anson Tebbetts said Henson has been “put on leave effective immediately as we try to learn more about these allegations.” Henson’s bio has been stripped from the WCAX website.

Nexstar Broadcasting and Mission Broadcasting has completed the purchase of WFFF and WVNY, the Fox and ABC affiliates in Burlington, Vt.-Plattsburgh, N.Y.

Nexstar bought the two stations from Smith Media, LLC for $16.9 million. Nexstar and Mission have entered into a local services agreement for Nexstar to provide sales and other services to WVNY.

“This transaction is consistent with our acquisition criteria as it further diversifies our operations, expands our scale, creates another new duopoly market and is financially accretive,” Nexstar chairman and CEO Perry A. Sook said in a statement.

WPTZ, the NBC affiliate in Plattsburgh, N.Y., has added CW programming on a digital subchannel weeknights from 8 to 10 p.m.

The digital subchannel will continue broadcasting classic shows as part of its MeTV affiliation during the day.

“The way we see it, great TV is great TV — no matter what your age,” WPTZ-WNNE president and general manager Kyle Grimes said in a statement. “We hope viewers will share our excitement for a station that pairs some of the country’s best new programming with its finest classic TV shows.”

Steve Bottari has joined WCAX, the CBS-affiliate in Burlington, as weekday morning anchor.

Bottari joins Molly Smith and meteorologist Gary Sadowsky on the morning newscast. The New England native was most recently a video intern at USA Today. He has previously worked at WBIN, the independent station in Manchester, where he was a multimedia journalist.

“It’s an honor to be part of the community,” Bottari said in a statement. “We will keep the region informed with news, sports and weather and have a little fun as viewers start their day.”

Paul Sands, president and general manager of Hearst Television’s WPTZ-WNNE in Plattsburgh-Burlington, has announced his retirement.

Sands will be succeeded by Kyle Grimes, who is currently the news director at another Hearst station, WPBF in Palm beach. The move is return to WPTZ-WNNE for Grimes, who was news director at the stations from 2005-08.

In a statement announcing the moves, Hearst president and CEO David Barrett said the management transition “takes on special significance, with Kyle Grimes succeeding his one-time mentor Paul Sands at the helm of our stations.”

Sands will stay on for the next few months during the transitional period, according to the statement. Read more

Chelsea Ingram, a former Miss North Carolina pageant contestant and trained operatic singer, is beginning her TV career with WFFF-WVNY, the Smith Media-owned Fox-ABC duopoly in Burlington, VT.

WFFF-WVNY announced this week that Ingram is joining their team as a weekend meteorologist. Her first day is today.

“Chelsea is an up-and-coming weather anchor and we are very pleased to work with her as she begins her on-air forecasting career,” WFFF-WVNY news director Tracy Davis said, announcing the hiring. Read more