Press Kit
Photos, clips, and copy for press, media, and collaborators.
The People’s Republic of Astoria is a six-episode narrative documentary podcast chronicling seven years of grassroots organizing in Astoria, Queens — from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s 2018 congressional primary through Zohran Mamdani’s 2025 mayoral primary win. Written, narrated, and produced by Tim Donovan.
In 2018, ten strangers met in Astoria Park to knock on doors for a longshot congressional candidate named Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Just seven years later, the movement they helped build would grow to 100,000 strong — and win the mayor’s office itself.
The People’s Republic of Astoria is a six-episode narrative documentary podcast that tells the story of that movement, from the inside. Through interviews with organizers, canvassers, campaign managers, and volunteers, the series traces how a quiet neighborhood in Queens became the epicenter of a political revolution — one staircase at a time.
The show is written, narrated, and produced by Tim Donovan, a 15-year Astoria resident and former freelance journalist who joined the movement himself in early 2025, and found he couldn’t look away.
Short clips for social sharing and editorial use.
Tim Donovan is a writer, narrator, and producer based in Astoria, Queens, where he has lived for fifteen years. A former freelance journalist whose work appeared in Salon, VICE, Al Jazeera America, and AlterNet, he spent the better part of two decades working in hospitality before joining the grassroots movement that would become the subject of his first podcast. The People’s Republic of Astoria is his debut audio project.