Shortly after news of the Letterman scandal broke (you may recall that it was broken by intrepid reporter David Letterman), Nikki Finke theorized that CBS wouldn’t investigate it because CBS boss Les Moonves and his boss, Sumner Redstone, had both had adulterous affairs, and so they wouldn’t be too keen on digging into Letterman.

But as the New York Observer‘s Felix Gilette reports, CBS will be looking into the sex-and-extortion saga the way they know best: with a crack investigative reporter.

Is the journalism industry so down at the mouth these days that David Letterman is the only thing standing between it an utter irrelevance? Probably not, but you’d be forgiven for drawing that conclusion based on how much ink the Late Show host’s love life continues to generate. How much more can we read before utter boredom with the ‘scandal’ sets in.

Last night, after a weekend of being battered by the press, David Letterman apologized on air to both his wife and his staff. The part that struck as a strange and insincere admission? That he didn’t see the tabloid frenzy coming. Did Dave just move to New York City?

Based on the coverage David Letterman‘s alleged love life is getting these days you’d be forgiven for concluding that Letterman wasn’t the victim of a $2 million extortion plot but the subject of an undercover investigation or sexual harassment lawsuit. Accuracy seems to be taking a back seat to scandalous headlines.

David Letterman‘s seemingly schizophrenic first 15 minutes of tonight’s Late Show spanned the spectrum from funny to serious, all while sticking firmly to the subject of his extortion/sex with staffers revelation last week.

As Rachel Sklar asked earlier tonight, “Which Letterman should we believe?” Well here’s what they both had to say.

In September 2005, Gossip Cop‘s Michael Lewittes had a random encounter with David Letterman and his assistant, Stephanie Birkitt. Four years later — in the midst of Letterman’s affair/extortion super story — the serendipitous encounter seems less like a charming coincidence and more like a priceless insider’s anecdote.

Over at The Huffington Post, they’ve been treating the news of David Letterman‘s shocking affairs with staffers — and the extortionist who tried to squeeze Letterman for $2 million dollars, suspected to be Robert “Joe” Halderman — with their trademark blanket coverage, leaving no stone unturned. The secret winner? Jay Leno. Ads for his show are popping up all around the news of his rival’s troubles.

Up until this mess broke wide open, Joe Halderman was known as an Emmy-winning producer for CBS’ 48 Hours. Millions of people may have seen the work of Halder, 51, but they didn’t know who he was. Now, his name is on the way to infamy — as the guy who tried to blackmail David Letterman.