Today's hot topic

An excellent mini-spat between Today programme alumni - all, of course, experts in not only their field but all other fields has well.

Quiz master, morning news-jock, author and journalist John Humphrys started this round in The Sun, by coming out in favour of paywalls on newspaper websites."Good journalism has to be paid for, just as we have to pay for the plumber who fixes a leak, or it will not survive. And let's be clear: We have the best papers in the world. Full stop". These wise papers, it should be noted, often top up John's BBC stipend with money.

Now one of John's former editors at Today, Kevin Marsh, presumably fully dressed in cap and gown as Editor of the BBC's College of Journalism, has responded with a piece which is half-academic abstract and half-Geldof-style rant. At the core, this: "Well-funded journalism doesn't unavoidably entail its readers paying to be let in through a turnstile to read it". On the side: "Of all the arguments in favour of newspaper paywalls, one is utter tosh. It is that we - the readers - must pay online to preserve what one tabloid editor once called 'the best newspapers in the world' " Kevin, I believe, is licence-fee funded only.

Back on Humphrys' team, former Today duty editor Tim Luckhurst, probably with a fur and silk trimmed gown now as Professor of Journalism at Kent University, follows up with a terse blog post "Everyone in the Centre should know my view: the idea that journalists can gather facts and hold power to account on a charitable basis is nonsensical. The industry was built on the principle of fair payment for quality reporting. Free access to news spells the end of professional newsgathering on which representative democracy depends." And any other theory might, presumably, lead to a lower grade. Tim's main income is from the University - but he is a regular supplier of insight and comment to papers in England and Scotland.