NPR - All Things Considered: Prison Diaries

A panoramic view of the Cristel's cell at the Rhode Island Training School.
(See the Quick Time panoramic movie at www.360degrees.com).

Find out more about each story:

Jan. 2 - Doing Time: John's Diary
Jan. 9 - Serving 9 to 5: Correctional Officer Diary
Jan. 16 - Matthew & the Judge: Juvenile Court Diary
Jan. 23 - Going Home: Cristel's Diary

Participate in NPR's discussion board, or send in questions you may have for the featured diarists.

Hear more from participants and see interactive elements in the online documentary at www.360degrees.org.

Life in Jail

For six months during the past year, five inmates, four correctional officers and a judge used tape recorders to keep audio journals. The diarists recorded the sounds and scenes of everyday life behind bars: shakedowns, new inmate arrivals, roll call, monthly family visits, meals at the chow hall, and quiet moments late at night inside a cell.

Prison Diaries takes place inside two correctional facilities: Polk Youth Institution in Butner, NC and the Rhode Island Training School (for juveniles) in Cranston, RI. More than 245 hours of raw tape have been edited into five half-hour documentaries, produced by Joe Richman and Wendy Dorr of Radio Diaries.

Prison Diaries is produced by Joe Richman, creator of the acclaimed Teenage Diaries series and founder of Radio Diaries, Inc., a non-profit production company committed to helping people document their own lives. Associate Producer is Wendy Dorr.

American RadioWorks is the documentary project of Minnesota Public Radio and NPR News.