This paper is concerned with the lack of an agreed framework for the curriculum for journalism education. The paper reports on research into the beliefs and values underlying the two main undergraduate degree programmes in journalism in Ireland, with the aim of gaining a better understanding of the concepts of journalism and journalism education on which the curricula were based. Critical discourse analysis was used in the research. The discrepancies found in the two concepts within and between different texts make clear that the problems within journalism education reflect the wider problems of lack of closure in the discourses of journalism and journalism education. The paper concludes by discussing the implications of the findings for professional journalism programmes.