My name is Aaron Kavanagh and I'm a 2022 graduate of New Media Studies at IADT. Over the four years that I have studied there, I have gained knowledge in video and podcast production, journalism, fictional writing, film and media studies, law, design thinking, website and portfolio building and much, much more. I am currently focused on cultural journalism and have had my writing featured in the Irish Daily Star, Buzz.ie, New Noise Magazine and XS Noize.
Below, you can download three samples of my journalism writing.
The first sample is on how the live entertainment industry in Ireland was affected during the COVID-19 pandemic and features interviews with various promoters, ticket agents, musicians and venue owners throughout the country. Written in my fourth year.
The second sample is on the neo-abolitionist model towards prostitution, introduced in Ireland in 2017, and features interviews with journalist and lecturer Dr Eilis Ward and politician Cllr Keith Redmond. Written in my second year.
The third sample is a culture piece about the history of the McGonagle's nightclub, formerly on Dublin's South Anne Street. Written in my third year.
My thesis was on a concept that I created called "Retroactive Fandoms," to explain the phenomenon of nostalgic content being made at an audience that was too young to have any nostalgia for what was being advertised to them. Additionally, I explored the concept of people retroactively looking fondly back on media from their childhood that they initially had no interest in.