Matthew Bartlett has the most notorious middle finger in the country right now. On Thursday, Central Florida News 13 caught the 28-year-old TGI Friday’s server flippin’ the bird at Casey Anthony prosecutor Jeff Ashton and alerted Judge Belvin Perry.

Perry dragged Bartlett in front of the court and sentenced him to six days in jail and a fine of $400, plus $223 in court costs.

“This is just some stupid thing that I did,” Bartlett told Perry, unable to give a reason for why he flipped off the prosecutor. Video of the sentencing, which looks a lot like an episode of “Judge Judy,” inside… Read more

John Walton, who most recently served as an executive producer at regional cable news station Central Florida News 13, has been named news director of KARD-KTVE, a Nexstar-owned duopoly serving the Monroe, LA-El Dorado, AR market.

“John began his career in Louisiana and was looking for an opportunity to return to his home state. I believe he is the right fit for our team,” said  said general manager Jerry Jones in announcing the hiring. “He has all the tools to take these two stations to the next level of in-depth, substantive news coverage. We’re proud to have him in the Nexstar family.”

A Louisiana native, Walton attended Southern University in Baton Rouge and worked as a producer at nearby WAFB early in his career. Read more

The Society of Professional Journalists announced the winners of its 2010 Sigma Delta Chi Award this week. The awards banquet will be held on September 24th in New Orleans, giving WVUE an opportunity to accept their award for Investigative Reporting in front of a hometown crowd.

Here’s a list of winners:

Investigative Reporting (Small-Market Station, 51+)
The Gravy Train – by Lee Zurik, Donny Pearce, Greg Phillips and Mikel Schaefer, WVUE

Investigative Reporting (Large-Market Station 1-50)
Their Crime, Your Dime – by Chris Ingalls, Kellie Cheadle and Steve Douglas, KING

Feature Reporting (Large-Market Station 1-50)
Land of 10,000 Stories – by Boyd Huppert, Jonathan Malat and Bill Middeke, KARE

Breaking News Coverage (Small-Market Station 51+)
Family Feud – by A.J. Lagoe, Paul Nevadomski, Ben Arnold and Katelyn Sherwood, WRIC

Breaking News Coverage (Large-Market Station 1-50)
Palm Bay Hospital Gunman – by Staff, Central Florida News 13

Video of the winning entries is available on SPJ’s website.

Marla Weech, who the Orlando Sentinel once called the grande dame of Orlando TV, has landed at Central Florida News 13, a cable-based news station serving central Florida. She’s set to make her on-air debut with the Bright House-owned station next month.

Weech, a native Floridian and a graduate of the University of Central Florida, has over two decades of experience anchoring in the Orlando market.

She spent most of her career with ABC-affiliate WFTV before moving on to CBS-affiliate WKMG, where she anchored the station’s noon, 4, and 5:50 p.m. newscasts.

Weech was eventually laid off by WKMG in the summer of 2008 in a move that was blamed on “tough economic times.”  Read more