Shailey Tripp, Todd Palin, the National Enquirer and a Journalistic Conundrum

Have you heard the news reports?

Todd Palin, the husband of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, is said to have been caught having an affair with Shailey Tripp, a 36-year-old massage therapist turned prostitution house madam.

The problem with the allegations? They come to the world via the National Enquirer. Yes, that would be the same tabloid that first brought the world news of John Edwards' affair with Rielle Hunter, as well as photos of Edwards holding his love child. That coverage even landed the paper, which often pays its sources for information, a Pulitzer Prize nomination.

Here, then, is what the Enquirer had to say on the Palin matter today:

While the story heats up on the internet, The ENQUIRER has uncovered official documents confirming the woman's arrest, and learned police have confiscated physical evidence that could tie Todd to an alleged extramarital affair.

As was the case when Edwards was confronted by the Enquirer's allegations, Todd Palin, through his representatives, has "vehemently denied" that he cheated on his wife.

This not the first time that the Enquirer has targeted a Palin with charges of marital infidelity. During the 2008 campaign John McCain threatened to sue the paper over a story it ran claiming that Sarah Palin had had an affair with one of her husband's business partners.

Were it not for the fact that what much of the Enquirer reported about John Edwards turned out to be true, nobody would much pay attention to the claims about either Palin. In this case, it is also true that Tripp did plead guilty to maintaining a house of prostitution in Anchorage.

And a client review for a listing for Tripp's Wasilla, Alaska, massage therapy services gives one further pause. It reads:

She gives new meaning to the phrase: "Happy Ending"

Does any of this mean that Todd Palin is guilty of any transgressions? Not by a long shot. Just don't tell that to the Enquirer and all the fans it gained in the wake of its John Edwards scoop.

More Surge Desk coverage:
John Edwards Engaged: Timeline of an Internet Rumor
2010: The Year Sarah Palin Became the Queen of All Media