2022 Otterbein graduate Noah Martin has been awarded the Podcast of the Year Award from the Columbus Podcasting Awards (CPAs).
According to their website, the CPAs, which began in 2018, are awarded to Columbus-based podcasts to recognize podcasters for the effort they put into creating quality content and are voted on by the public to determine the winners.
Martin, who studied journalism and media communication at Otterbein, founded his company Retrospection Multimedia in 2018 to combat the burnout he felt throughout high school. It was also a way to bring his friends together to do his favorite thing: tell stories.
“I said, ‘okay, I love writing plays, I love acting and I have a bunch of friends within the acting department. Let’s just get everyone together, we’ll buy a $20 Wal-Mart microphone and just see what happens.”
Martin won the CPA award for his show Retrospection Radio Theatre, which he describes as a nostalgic audio drama with a focus on mental health through the lenses of drama and horror stories. Stemming from inspiration found in older radio dramas, Martin wanted to tell stories that people needed to hear.
“It’s this idea of using this old way and old feeling to tell new and appropriate stories. Old time radio used to be just entertainment with no way to review and reflect on yourself,” Martin said. “I write stories because I think they need to be heard.”
Telling stories for people who need to hear them is part of the draw that Martin’s podcast had for his audience.
“I really didn’t expect to win,” said Martin, who was at home celebrating his birthday on the night of the awards ceremony. “I was surrounded by friends, most of which were in those first podcasts. So it was a last minute and a pleasant surprise.”
