There's just one more week to win a £20 book token for having your piece published in Media Scope's weekly Over to You column. Just send us a 200-word piece on a media-related topic.
Aaron Callan, De La Salle College, Dundalk, Co Louth
I would like to talk about the excellent, imminent sale of the Dundalk Shopping Centre and the obvious gratitude of everybody, as described last in your Property section.
Did you portray the job losses, traffic jams, the disruption to the everyday shopper? But of course you didn't - that way people would dispute the sale and the upgrades that are planed when it is sold. This is mainly due to the giant multi-story car park, which is going to close down the Tesco supermarket and the other stores on that side of the building. Then, with the pay-parking to come into play, it is yet again going to hurt the customer.
Newspapers and other media companies don't tell the whole truth, so that everything seems fine. For once I would like the media to tell both sides of the story.
Martin Crummy, Abbey Grammar School, Newry, Co Down
The citizens of this State in 2002 will experience a rather strange event - the change of Irish money into new European euros. Gone will be the days of the punt and in will come the currency that will unite the European Union.
Are we as ready as a nation to face up to this change? The media I believe have the answer to that, and the media in Ireland have done a very good job in preparing the way for the conversion.
The strategy in getting us used to the conversion has been by using newspaper and television advertisements. The angle has been to get the wider public to understand that one punt will equal 1.27 euros, and it is my belief that it has been very effective. The use of celebrities like Paul McGrath has been a very effective way of in getting the message through.
Some credit must also go to the Government, which has spent time and money in getting Irish businesses and people ready for the change.
Other EU countries have not been so forward and have left the push too late and are now running out of time to educate their people. Ireland is a front runner in the educating of the masses on the effects of the euro change; may this early, effective work by both the media and the Government provide a solid basis from which a successul change from punts to euro will take place.
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Media Scope is edited by Harry Browne
