Best of jazz festival to be broadcast world wide

This weekend's Guinness Jazz Festival in Cork is set to provide a major boost for Irish tourism.

The festival will be covered by USA's National Public Radio (NPR), which will broadcast the best of the festival world wide.

With a listenership of more than 20 million in the US and overseas, NPR is renowned for its cultural programming and is the principle promoter of jazz music in America.

NPR will run a series of one-hour specials from Cork for its listeners across the US, via cable in Japan, via the Internet and through the US Forces Network around the world.

NPR’s affiliate station. WDUQ in Pittsburgh will record nine of the top jazz music attractions at the Everyman Palace Theatre throughout the jazz weekend.

The BBC in London is covering the concerts featuring the BBC Big Band. In addition, BBC Scotland will be operating alongside crews from Jazz FM and Radio Merseyside.