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The art of local news

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FOUNDER: Danny Casey founded the Killarney Advertiser in 1973.

By Cormac Casey

 

In the 1970s my father, Danny Casey, had a belief that local news must be produced locally. We must remember in the '70s we only had county and national paid newspapers and one national broadcaster. If any local community was lucky enough to feature nationally, more often than not, it wasn’t the desired headline.

 

Understanding how news was delivered in the '70s we have to remember that Tim Berners-Lee only tentatively introduced the World Wide Web in 1989, 15 years passed before Zuckerberg’s Facebook surfaced, Twitter two years later and the first generation of i-Phone arrived the following year.

In the '70s local news was word-of-mouth. However, our natural ability to embellish even the simplest story turned into a thing of legend. What was missing was the method to communicate local news and control our own narrative from within our own community and, more importantly, to accurately document community history.

Today we consume news from numerous different mediums, from the printed page to our social media account. Whatever the medium, our news needs never change - one constant is the reliable source and our personal choice of engagement.

In 1973 the objective of the Killarney Advertiser was to deliver real local news locally. The method of the time was print. Over 47 years the product has dramatically evolved from a humble 10 page black and white to a 72 page full-colour publication. Today print is one of many media products available to us: our online and social media presence is another facet of our offering, and this is only the beginning.

The ‘Let's Talk About Town’ online survey published this week was facilitated by the Killarney Chamber of Tourism and Commerce and collated by the Institute of Technology in Tralee. One of the survey questions asked, ‘We want to know how do you find out what’s going on in Killarney?’ The response clearly shows that Danny Casey’s 1973 objective continues to deliver today. This is very positive news for the Killarney Advertiser team and the community. Quality hyper-local news is alive and well.

The Killarney Advertiser is not one entity, it is a community. I would like to acknowledge the dedicated ‘Advertiser’ team, contributors and readers, and a special thank you to the commercial community that continues to fuel this project, and finally the participants of the survey who delivered a clear and resounding support for one man’s simple objective to deliver local news.

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Killarney for Palestine film screening

Killarney for Palestine recently held a sold-out screening of the Oscar-winning documentary ‘No Other Land’ at the West End School of Arts, raising €2,100 for Camp Breakerz. The event, which […]

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Killarney for Palestine recently held a sold-out screening of the Oscar-winning documentary ‘No Other Land’ at the West End School of Arts, raising €2,100 for Camp Breakerz.

The event, which took place on July 3, included two screenings, both of which were fully booked. Guests enjoyed cheese and wine before the shows.
‘No Other Land’ depicts the ongoing destruction in Masafer Yatta, a cluster of villages in the Southern West Bank, and shows the experiences of Palestinians under Israeli occupation. The film won in the Best Documentary category at this year’s Academy Awards.
The screenings were organised in association with the West End School of Arts.
All proceeds from the €25 tickets benefited Camp Breakerz Crew, a children’s charity based in Gaza that provides creative outlets through dance and is involved in food distribution programs in Nuseirat Camp and Deir-Al-Balah due to food shortages.
Sally MacMonagle, who recently spent time in Aida Refugee Camp in Bethlehem, also spoke at one of the screenings.

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Bid to host European Presidency summit meetings gathers pace

Fianna Fáil Spokesperson on Tourism, Michael Cahill TD, has highlighted Killarney’s suitability to host summit meetings of international Government Ministers during Ireland’s six-month European Presidency tenure in 2026. Deputy Cahill […]

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Fianna Fáil Spokesperson on Tourism, Michael Cahill TD, has highlighted Killarney’s suitability to host summit meetings of international Government Ministers during Ireland’s six-month European Presidency tenure in 2026.

Deputy Cahill believes Kerry’s available accommodation, food, and conference facilities are “second to none,” with Killarney as the central location.
“Visitors from every corner of the earth have been coming to Kerry for centuries now, to experience its beauty and serenity and have returned on many occasions because of the fabulous time they have enjoyed during their stay here,” said Deputy Cahill. “Where else would you want to bring the senior Government Ministers of all of our EU counterpart states, to experience Ireland, its customs and heritage?”
The Rossbeigh TD outlined various attractions available for visitors during downtime: “During their downtime, they can visit the Blaskets and Slea Head, Sceilg Mhichíl and the Ring of Kerry, Killarney’s Lakes, Gap of Dunloe, National Park and Sliabh Luachra, all of our glorious beaches from Ballybunion to Rossbeigh, Kells to Ventry, Whitestrand to Inch, Ballinskelligs to Cromane, Waterville to Derrynane.” He also cited Kerry’s golf courses, Listowel Writers Week, the Rose of Tralee, and Puck Fair as potential experiences.
Deputy Cahill confirmed he has raised this matter with An Taoiseach, Micheál Martin; An Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Simon Harris; and Minister of State for European Affairs, Thomas Byrne.
“If Killarney’s bid is successful in bringing the Heads of State to our county for meetings, conferences and functions, it will be a massive boost to the local economy in Killarney and also throughout the county,” added Cahill.”Iwill continue to push in the coming months for Killarney and Kerry to be included as bases for the rounds of meetings that are to take place from July 1 to December 312026.”

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