1) Is democratic practice best served by a primarily commercial media system (i.e. a free marketplace of ideas) or a state-run/regulated alternative? Discuss with reference to Habermas's notion of the public sphere.

2) Adorno and Horkheimer suggested that form of popular media texts coupled with their mass distribution served to preserve capitalism. Outline the details of their argument: to what extent does Walter Benjamin's essay on "The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction" undermine their argument?

3) What is your understanding of the role of technology in bringing about social and cultural change? Discuss with reference to the media technology of you choice.

4) Oligopoly, monopoly and the US film film industry. Discuss the role of the state in shaping the US film industry from the 1910s to the 1990s.

5) Is it still possible to refer to Hollywood as "a film industry" - discuss with reference to the new Hollywood and idea that films are best described as commercial intertexts. What implications might such a description have for understanding the formal content of "blockbuster" movies?

6) Outline the major elements of EU audiovisual policy since 1987. Discuss their relevance for Irish film and television policy since the mid-1980s.