If you can believe it, David Letterman confessing on live television that he had inappropriate relations with members of his staff actually had a positive impact on ratings. I know, I know. Total insanity. Letterman initially made the admission last Thursday, but then on Monday he returned to the topic, to apologize to his staff and his wife for all the drama this has caused. (Clip above.) It turned out to be ratings gold:

Some 5.7 million people tuned in on Monday to hear Letterman apologize to his wife and staff for his on-air revelations last week about his sexual affairs and an alleged blackmail plot. That was a 36 percent increase over the audience for the "Late Show with David Letterman" on Monday last week, and a 19 percent jump on the 2009-2010 season-to-date average for the talk show of 4.8 million viewers, CBS said on Tuesday. Show business newspaper Daily Variety noted that Monday's Letterman ratings at 11:30 p.m. were higher than anything struggling NBC had on Monday in prime time, including its returning drama series "Heroes," new medical series "Trauma" and "The Jay Leno Show" at its new 10 p.m. slot which pulled in 4.3 million viewers.

What's funny is that no one other than his staff and his wife seems to actually be angry at Letterman for this. There's been very little public outrage, at least none that I've really picked up on. Did everyone just kind of assume that Letterman was a philanderer anyway? Is it all okay since he stepped up to the plate and admitted his mistake -- albeit only after being blackmailed? Or do we not expect our late-night funnymen to be moral compasses in the first place? /> If you can believe it, David Letterman confessing on live television that he had inappropriate relations with members of his staff actually had a positive impact on ratings. I know, I know. Total insanity. Letterman initially made the admission last Thursday, but then on Monday he returned to the topic, to apologize to his staff and his wife for all the drama this has caused. (Clip above.) It turned out to be ratings gold: Some 5.7 million people tuned in on Monday to hear Letterman apologize to his w...

Ohhhhhh wowsers. Someone backed David Letterman into quite a corner. The late-night host admitted at a taping of his show this afternoon that someone attempted to blackmail him for $2M as a result of sexual relations he'd had with members of his staff. During the taping of his CBS late-night show in New York, Letterman discussed receiving a threat to either pay $2 million or risk the relationships being made public.

In a release from the show's production company, Letterman said he referred the matter to the Manhattan district attorney's office and that an investigation ended in an arrest Thursday. Letterman did not identify the person he said was arrested. As part of the investigation, Letterman said he issued a "phony" $2 million check to the individual and the arrest followed — along with testimony by Letterman. "This morning, I did something I've never done in my life," said Letterman. "I had to go downtown and testify before a grand jury." In his testimony, he said he acknowledged sexual relationships with members of his staff. It was not immediately clear when the relationships took place; Letterman and longtime girlfriend Regina Lasko married in March. The couple began dating in 1986 and have a son, Harry, born in November 2003. "My response to that is, yes I have," Letterman said. "Would it be embarrassing if it were made public? Perhaps it would. I feel like I need to protect these people. I need to certainly protect my family."

I'm going to go ahead and assume that the relationships took place while he was with his current girlfriend. If they happened before 1986, why would he feel threatened by a blackmail attempt? Who cares who banged whom in 1986? But obviously Letterman's World Wide Pants are living up to their name. I'm waiting on a clip of the actual Letterman broadcast so I can embed it ... let me know if you come across it on YouTube. Update: Vid is above. Awwwwwkward. TMZ reports that 51-year-old Robert Halderman, an employee of 48 Hours, has been arrested, and CBS has suspended him pending results of the investigation. /> Ohhhhhh wowsers. Someone backed David Letterman into quite a corner. The late-night host admitted at a taping of his show this afternoon that someone attempted to blackmail him for $2M as a result of sexual relations he'd had with members of his staff. During the taping of his CBS late-night show in New York, Letterman discussed receiving a threat to either pay $2 million or risk the relationships being made public. In a release from the show's production company, Letterman said he referred the matter to the Manhattan ...