Frames of Truth Podcast

Most recently, I sat down with Dave Phillips and Joshua Wallace from Hope Mission in downtown Anderson, South Carolina. The purpose of the meeting was straightforward. They are exploring the idea of launching a podcast and wanted to think through strategy, structure, audience, and purpose before taking the first step. As a professor of communication, a documentary storyteller, a business owner, an...

The Lynching of Elbert Harris and the Weight of Remembering Why a Racial Terror Lynching from 1898 Still Matters in Anderson County Today On May 20, 1898, 18-year-old Elbert Harris was taken from custody by a white mob near Iva, South Carolina, beaten severely, and later died from his injuries inside the Anderson County Jail. No one was ever held accountable. In this episode, Bobby Rettew reflects...

The Rise of Documentary: Why Storytelling Is Entering a New Era In this episode of Frames of Truth , Bobby Rettew reflects on the growing rise of documentary storytelling and why this moment feels like a turning point for story, media, and culture. Drawing from his experiences teaching documentary production, producing long-form client work, and engaging in graduate studies surrounding editing and...

🎙️ Episode 3 Show Notes “I Am These Kids” (with Steve Coleman) In this episode of Frames of Truth , Bobby Rettew sits down with Steve Coleman, Director of College Outreach at Piedmont Technical College and founder of MODELS Academy, for a real and unfiltered conversation about access, opportunity, and what it takes to change the trajectory of a life. Steve shares the story behind MODELS Academy, a...

In this episode of Frames of Truth , I go back about twenty years to a story that shaped the way I understand storytelling. At the time, I was a young photojournalist trying to find my footing in a Charlotte newsroom. Alongside Stuart Watson, I worked on a piece about Ronald Gattis—an opera singer attempting to rebuild his life after addiction. What I thought was just another assignment became som...

In this first episode of Frames of Truth , Bobby Rettew sits down with Ginny Fretwell, publisher of The Electric City News , for a real and unfiltered conversation about storytelling, community, and the role of local journalism. Ginny shares her unexpected journey from a 28-year career in education into launching a community newspaper alongside her sister. What started as a leap of faith turned in...