Any thoughts on the David Letterman extortion story?

I was wondering if anyone had any thoughts on the David Letterman story (he revealed on his show someone attempted to extort money from him in order to not reveal that he has had affairs with female staffers).

I guess one of the things that surprised me the most about this is that he himself admitted his conduct was "terrible" and "creepy", but a lot of people seem to think it isn't a big deal, that the women weren't necessarily victims, that as long as everyone involved was consenting adults over the age of 21 there was no problem.

It seems a no-brainer to me that in a situation like this, where one person obviously has a lot of power and influence in the industry he works in, that the two people involved are not on equal terms from the get-go. An extremely powerful boss embarking on a relationship (or in this case, multiple relationships apparently) with an underling is a scenario rife with potential problems.

The other interesting aspect is the accusation of attempted extortion. The alleged would-be extorter was apparently a former boyfriend of one of Letterman's romantic interests, and I've read he had financial problems. On the other hand his lawyer points out that the guy had a lot of experience with crime, wiretaps, etc, was way too smart to attempt to commit a crime and that the actual story is more complicated than has been revealed.

How much more complicated could it be? Would someone desparate for money attempt a plot like this (I think yes)?

My gut feeling is that yes, the boyfriend was capable of doing something like this, and would have had ample motivation. I have the feeling this is the kind of situation that, when it all shakes out, will leave everyone involved looking rather shabby.