The Media's potential for good is seen in the work of journalists like John Pilger, Robert Fisk and Veronica Guerin. Media products are created to make money, yet many journalists act out of a higher sense of responsibility and public duty than the industry necessarily demands. Journalism's service to democracy is clear - thus phrases like "freedom of the press". When media act responsibly and effectively, we are all empowered politically. Conversely, when media are censored - and this can include self-censorship for fear of costly lawsuits - or when they serve the interests of certain sectors rather than the public interest, then we are in danger of being uninformed and misinformed. We are also in danger of being lulled into a false sense of security, apathy or ignorance.

Media literacy is about making the hidden visible. It is about peeling back the layers of PR-speak, glamour and glibness that define much media output and laying the mechanism bare. The study of certain fields of human endeavour can enrich us intellectually, morally and emotionally. Others have the power to enrich us politically as well.

The particular value of media education is in its egalitarian thrust. We can be masters, not servants, active, not passive, because we choose and select in an informed way. The buzzword in media today is "interactivity". However, a medium is only truly interactive when the user is acting from a position of knowledge.

Mary Gillan is chair of the Teachers' Association for Media Education (TAME), and teaches at Hartstown Community School, Dublin. She can be e-mailed at mbg@indigo.ie