Separated at birth: NY Mag's Sarah Palin story, our Sarah Palin story

Well, this is awkward: NY Mag, this week; and the Boston Phoenix, July 2009

Back in July of 2009, Boston Phoenix staffer DAVID BERNSTEIN wrote an article about how Sarah Palin was about to rake in the dough -- a piece that examined the underbelly of the Conservative punditocracy in America, and explained how Palin, by becoming the leading figure in it, was poised to make a hell of a lot more money as a full-time free agent than she would as a half-assed Alaskan governor. The tease? "The biggest brand name in conservative politics is about to enter the burgeoning right-wing marketplace — and she's perfect for it."

We flew that story on the cover under the headline SARAH, INC. -- right next to a disembodied image of Palin's painfully-forced smile. 

Fast forward to late April, 2010: New York Magazine staff writer Gabriel Sherman files a story on how Sarah Palin, CEO of the Conservative punditocracy in America, is making a hell of a lot more money than she would have as a half-assed Alaskan governor. The tease? "Sarah Palin is already president of right-wing America -- and it's a position with a very big salary."

But the New York Mag story is waaaaay different: for their headline, they went with . . . PALIN, INC. 

They appear to have used the exact same photo, though.

Imitation, flattery, etc.