Radio and television also serve to keep us informed. Most stations depend on advertisers, who buy ads based on audience figures. RTE is the State's public-service broadcaster, but it too is highly dependent on advertisers. Plenty of constraints there, you might think, and you might have a point.

A new station such as TV3, largely controlled by international media group CanWest, needs to show advertisers that people are watching. In some parts of the Ireland there are about 20 channels available - stiff competition. One way to ensure a profit is to keep costs down and focus on programming which pleases as wide a spectrum as possible. Soaps and sitcoms can be bought in quite cheaply and constitute a grand, relaxing way to spend the evening - but they're not very informative.

And this emphasis is probably going to be amplified by the development of digital television - especially since Rupert Murdoch's satellite digital service, Sky Digital, has got a big jump on potential competitors and offers a huge number of stations. Murdoch's programme preferences are well known. Entertainment is obviously an important element of the media.

Even information should be conveyed in an interesting way. After all, you could find out all you needed to know about the state of Irish education legislation if you read the current Act, the White Paper and the new Bill - but you might fall asleep after the first sentence.

But if entertainment is emphasised at the expense of informing, what happens?