Local Ireland goes prime time

As the American media went green for St Patrick’s Day, the Irish internet portal Local Ireland, at www.local.ie, was at the fore of U.S. interest.

Chief Executive Officer Gerry McGovern and U.S Director Niall Swan were both interviewed by CNN, NBC, FOX Channel 5 and the leading business network CNBC. It was the first time an Irish internet brand made such a splash in mainstream American media, according to Swan.

Local Ireland also received feature coverage in the New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times, the Austin American Statesman, the New Orleans Times Picayune, the Arlington Morning News in Texas, Daily News in New York, the New York Post and radio stations across the U.S.

"The U.S. media loves that Local Ireland is the first ever .ie site to be marketed in America, and being the only Irish Internet venture based in Ireland and the U.S. was seen as a hugely positive thing," Swan said.

Media coverage also focused on New York as Local Ireland’s honorary 33rd county, and how more and more Irish-Americans are connecting with their Irish roots online.

Local Ireland’s "Irish Roots" marathon was also a huge hit with the American consumer media, as a panel of Ireland’s leading genealogists took questions online about people’s family trees and history. Local Ireland’s free flights to Ireland, and free Irish breakfasts were also widely f7eatured

Radio coverage of Local Ireland’s radio stretched across the country from New Hampshire, Michigan, Nashville, Tennessee, and Jacksonville, North Carolina, to Florida, Chicago, California and Mississippi. Local Ireland was also covered on a number of CBS-affiliated stations.