Can I quote you on that?

A harmless, throw away comment between myself and one of my colleagues got us thinking today about the role of journalists - and particularly how we see ourselves compared to how other people see us.

After somebody complained about our approach to a story (you can't please all of the people all of the time) I recounted a quote I'd read a long time ago (on the back of a matchbox, if I recall) from an American by the name of C E M Joad.

That quote was: "The secret of successful journalism is to make your readers so angry they will write half your paper for you."

My colleague Dave Morris, to whom I mentioned this, is not only a seasoned hack but also something of a scholar of the profession.

He quickly regaled me with his favourite quote about the ridiculous way we earn a living, from Lord Northcliffe: "Journalism - a profession whose business it is to explain to others what it personally does not understand."

These are obviously industry in-jokes and ones which most people working in the media will identify with.

Here's another example from G K Chesterton: "Journalism largely consists in saying 'Lord Jones is dead' to people who never knew Lord Jones was alive."

But a lot of people who regard journalists with suspicion (especially if they believe the ones portrayed on soap operas - something which usually gets me yelling at the gogglebox) will probably nod more sagely at some of the following.

"No news is good news. No journalists is even better." (Nicolas Bentley).

"Once a newspaper touches a story, the facts are lost forever, even to the protagonists." (Norman Mailer).

"I've always said there's a place for the press but they haven't dug it yet" (Tommy Docherty).

But in the Star's current climate, during which we have roughly three reporters in the entire company trying to fill 78 news pages a night, each with 2,354 stories on (I may be exaggerating slightly), I think this final quote sums things up nicely.

From British novelist Rebecca West in 1956: "Journalism: an ability to meet the challenge of filling space."

She could be speaking right now. Does anyone have 17cms of copy to finish page 13?