Perpetual optimism is annoying. It is a sign that you are not paying attention.

The minute you settle for less than you deserve, you get even less than you settled for.

[On journalists:] We are a noisy, imperfect lot, struggling to scribble what has been called the first draft of history.

Journalism, spooked by rumors of its own obsolescence, has stopped believing in itself. Groans of doom alternate with panicked happy talk.

The sounds of silence are a dim recollection now, like mystery, privacy and paying attention to one thing — or one person — at a time.

Wooing the press is an exercise roughly akin to picnicking with a tiger. You might enjoy the meal, but the tiger always eats last.

Celebrity distorts democracy by giving the rich, beautiful, and famous more authority than they deserve.

When I need to work up my nerve to write a tough column, I try to think of myself as Emma Peel in a black leather catsuit.

If you're famous enough, the rules don't apply.

A friendship between reporter and source lasts only until it is profitable for one to betray the other.

Celebrity is the religion of our time.

Time's the thief of memory

Curiosity and the urge to solve problems are theemotional hallmarks of our species

The first function of poetry is to tell the truth, to learn how to do that, to find out what you really feel and what you really think.

I think the desire to reject elites, to retreat within more comfortable geographic and personal borders and to lash out at political correctness is not a phenomenon unique to Britain or the US.

The shock, the power of an ordinary life. It is a thing you could not invent with banks of computers in a dust-free room.

I've always said you have to go through a lot of heartache in life to feel joy.

Don't forget to bring your sense of humor to your labor.

One minute you're bleeding. The next minute you're hemorrhaging. The next minute you're painting the Mona Lisa.

The church does not simply have a missions department; it should wholly exist to be a mission.

The Constitution does not require complete separation of church and state; it affirmatively mandates accommodation, not merely tolerance, of all religions, and forbids hostility toward any.