Abstract
The author describes media education in the field of tension between the critical observation of media and the task of educating people to deal with media in a competent way. For this, media education needs a theoretical framework, for which she recommends cultural studies. In the following, she uses the example of two reality TV broadcast formats to illustrate how power relations are connected to the production of television programmes and the effects on the recipients. The neoliberal image of man, according to which every individual is responsible for personal (mis)success and identity can be flexibly staged, is reflected in programmes like "Big Brother". Since these formats are adapted in numerous countries, they fit into the age of globalisation. Public broadcasters are struggling for ratings, producing similar formats and facing a crisis of legitimacy. Cultural studies, on the other hand, is evaluating television programmes, and media education is playing a regulatory role by encouraging a critical attitude on the part of recipients.
