As has been our wont for the past four decades or so, we were sitting at our desk pounding out yet another largely unread story the other day when news filtered through that Russell Fairfax Media, the publishers of this newspaper and others, was to be merged, sold, been taken over or something with Nine Entertainment, the owners of Channel Nine. The company’s new name, we were told via e-mail, would be Nine.

Now, way back when this correspondent was but a callow cadet, this newspaper was owned by Australian Consolidated Press (ACP).

Kerry Packer was in charge and we even met the great man one day when he made a tour of his empire. Since then there’s been a number of owners, so many in fact that we can’t recall most of them. Then a few years back Rural Press, a two bob organisation if ever there was one, was taken over by Fairfax Media.

Now, it would appear, we’ll be run by a television station.

So, does this mean this correspondent’s future is in television reporting? We’ve worked with a couple of young-uns over the years who eventually found their way into the glamorous world that is television journalism. Did pretty well, too, as we recall.

Now, it's not as though anyone ever offered us a job in TV. And that’s unlikely to change, although at least for a while we can be described as a ‘Nine employee’ when and if the deal comes to fruition.

But really, television reporting was never going to be our go. We’re prefer writing news for the paper. Not reading news out of it. Call us old fashioned if you will.

So if we’re aren’t going to have a working life behind the camera, then what awaits if our services are no longer required here? It hasn’t yet been explained what will happen with regional papers like the Times once the Fairfax-Nine union is blessed.

Maybe we could diversify.

We once asked 2RE-Max FM general manager Murray Nelson how he thought we’d fare as a shock jock. We’re sure we’d be able to handle the gig.

What could be so hard? Agreeing furiously every morning with anything mad Tony Abbott says or anything written in the Telegraph. Bagging Bill Shorten and the Greens and rabidly denying climate change. On second thoughts maybe not. Mr Nelson didn’t appear to be particularly keen on the idea anyway.

Oh well, we have to retire one day, we suppose. Another washed out, broken down old sports hack sidelined for good. No more Saturday or Sunday afternoons covering local footy… no more filling this space with garbage.

Then again, maybe nothing will change. There’s nothing like having a bit of mystery and intrigue in life, we suppose.