American Irish Historical Society Names Entrepreneur David C. Mccourt Its 2004 Gold Medal Awards Recipient

Revolutionary of the Telecom Industry Will Host Special Screening of Documentary About the Children of Ireland

NEW YORK, April 7th, 2004 — The 107-year-old American Irish Historical Society announced today that it would bestow its 2004 Gold Medal award upon entrepreneur and telecom executive David C. McCourt, Chairman and CEO of RCN Corp. The Gold Medal will be presented at the Society's annual dinner on November 4, 2004 at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City.

"David McCourt has been a spirited, visionary, and civic-minded business leader," said Kevin D. Cahill, M.D., the Society's President-General. "His energy, his innovative flair, his compassion for the less fortunate, and his deep pride in his Irish ancestry make him a worthy honoree of our Society."

"Like millions of others, I love Ireland and I love America," said Mr. McCourt. "I feel truly blessed to be selected for this Gold Medal by an organization that has done so much to preserve and promote the ties between these two great nations."

Mr. McCourt, one of seven children, was raised in Watertown, Massachusetts, and graduated from Georgetown University. For over 25 years, Mr. McCourt has been an innovator, entrepreneur, and business leader across the construction, communications, and media industries. He has founded 10 companies in 3 countries and is widely recognized as a transformational force in the telecommunications business.

His many achievements include building the first phone company to challenge the New England Telephone Company monopoly back in the early 1980s; then creating the first telecom company to offer a bundled package of cable, phone, and Internet services to the residential market. After U.S. troops liberated Grenada in 1983, McCourt established the first independent television station on the island, producing a range of programming for the Caribbean market.

Mr. McCourt is also the Executive Producer of the Showtime documentary series "What's Going On?," which examines the impact of global conflict on the lives of children around the world. The most recent installment of the series focuses on the children of Northern Ireland, and is hosted by Meg Ryan and features Irish tenor Ronan Tynan. A special screening of the documentary is scheduled for April 29th at the United Nations.

Mr. McCourt's maternal grandparents came through Ellis Island separately around the turn of the century from County Galway. He owns a home in New Market-on-Fergus, County Clare and visits Ireland several times a year.

About the American Irish Historical Society

The American Irish Historical Society was founded at the close of the 19th century to inform the world of the achievements of the Irish in America. Based in New York City, the Society is a national center of public scholarship and education, where current issues are explored and where the great renaissance in Irish culture is celebrated.

The Society's Library houses more than 10,000 volumes, the most complete private collection of Irish and American Irish history and literature in the United States. It is open to the public five days a week. As well, the Society hosts a full schedule of evening readings, lectures, and concerts throughout the academic year.

Previous recipients of the Society's Gold Medal include President Ronald Reagan, Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, business leader Donald Keough, author Mary Higgins.

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