Abstract
Ear Hustle is a podcast that takes listeners inside the San Quentin State Prison in San Francisco, California, and lets them hear about the impacts of mass incarceration directly from the people affected by it. To “ear hustle” means to eavesdrop, and this podcast gives an intimate view of both the daily and mundane moments as well as the significant and life-altering experiences related to incarceration. Now in its fifth season with more than 40 episodes, this podcast covers a wide variety of topics related to mass incarceration that are relevant to a broad range of sociology courses at all levels, including courses on criminal justice, criminology, and law; more general sociology courses, such as Social Stratification and Inequality, Social Problems, and Introduction to Sociology; and courses on gender, race and ethnicity, family, and health where the far-reaching effects of mass incarceration are discussed.
Introducing the podcast, the hosts claim that the general public is curious about life in prison and that it seeks out depictions found in the media through shows like Prison Break and Orange Is the New Black. These stories are inaccurate because they are written and acted out by people who have never experienced prison themselves. Students who are learning about mass incarceration may be similarly misinformed, connecting readings, theories, and research findings about mass incarceration to the limited depictions they find in media. What makes Ear Hustle unique is that it is a podcast co-hosted and co-produced by people who have been incarcerated and recorded, edited, and produced at the San Quentin State Prison. It started airing in 2017 as a partnership between co-producers and co-hosts Nigel Poor—a visual artist, professor of photography at the California State University in Sacramento, and volunteer teacher at the prison—and Earlonne Woods, who was serving a 31-years-to-life sentence at the San Quentin State Prison and had been incarcerated since 1997. In 2018, Earlonne Woods was released after his sentence was commuted, and he now contributes stories from outside the prison, focusing on experiences of reentry. The podcast continues recording and production inside the prison, with Rahsaan “New York” Thomas, who has been incarcerated since 2000, joining as a co-host and co-producer starting in season 4. By centering the voices of those affected by mass incarceration and involving them in the production and dissemination of their own stories, this podcast provides a unique and important learning resource.
A key contribution of this podcast is that it examines important features of the criminal justice system and demonstrates how they are experienced by people subjected to them. For example, episodes of this podcast have discussed the parole hearing process (“Episode 10: Getting a Date”), solitary confinement (“Episode 4: The SHU”), the death sentence (“Episode 17: The Row” and “Episode 35: Chicken on the Bone”), and how people cope with lifelong prison sentences (“Episode 8: Left Behind”). Many episodes also explore aspects of life in prison and prison subcultures—for example, working in prison (“Episode 32: Snack Money”), nicknames in prison (Episode 37: Myths and Monikers), relationships between incarcerated people and correctional officers (“Episode 39: Us and Them”), and norms about interaction in prison that are governed by race (“Episode 7: Unwritten”). Beyond challenges faced while in prison, this podcast also covers issues related to release and reentry, especially in season 4 and onward. For example, episodes of the podcast have covered preparing to leave prison (“Episode 19: So Long”), adjusting to life outside prison (“Episode 29: Kissing the Concrete”), and challenges related to getting a job after prison (“Episode 33: Life Shows Up”). These topics are highly relevant for sociology courses, especially those related to criminology, criminal justice, and law. In addition to courses that exclusively focus on the criminal justice system, this podcast would also be beneficial in general sociology courses where mass incarceration is discussed, such as Introduction to Sociology, Social Inequality, and Social Problems.
Illustrating the far-reaching consequences of mass incarceration, Ear Hustle also depicts the impacts of mass incarceration on families and relationships, for example, through episodes on parenting and fatherhood in prison (“Episode 15: Thick Glass” and “Episode 26: Bittersweet”) and maintaining relationships with loved ones through letter writing (“Episode 28: Respect the Paper”). Several episodes discuss dating and romantic relationships (“Episode 6: The Boom Boom Room”; “Episode 25: Prime Real Estate”; and “Episode 30: I Want the Fairy Tale”). The podcast also documents how mass incarceration is experienced by those who identify as LGBTQ in prison (“Episode 18: Down Low”), are an immigrant in prison (“Episode 21: Future on Ice”), and are aging in prison (“Episode 9: Gold Coats and OGs”). These topics would be relevant for sociology courses on gender, race and ethnicity, family, and health where the far-reaching effects of mass incarceration and intersections with other dimensions of inequality are discussed.
This podcast could also be used to illustrate and discuss theoretical concepts at both introductory and advanced levels. For example, at an introductory level, instructors could facilitate discussion on concepts like socialization and social norms after listening to “Episode 27: Excuse Me on the Tier,” about the reception center at the prison, where inmates first arrive and learn about norms and expectations of prison while waiting to be assigned a classification and an institution where they will serve their sentence. In more advanced courses, the podcast could be paired with foundational theoretical readings, such as Marx, Durkheim, DuBois, and Foucault, to facilitate discussion and application of theory. In advanced courses, the podcast could also be used to facilitate discussion about research methods; ethics, such as responsibilities to participants and minimizing harm; and positionality and reflexivity.
When assigning this podcast as course material, there are several practical matters instructors should take into consideration. On average, each episode is about 45 minutes long, with episodes in the first two seasons being shorter (about 30 minutes) and more recent episodes running longer (almost one hour). Every episode is organized around a specific topic or theme that is mentioned in the episode description. Because most episodes are under one hour long, instructors can choose to play an episode during class time or assign it for students to listen to before coming to class. Instructors may also choose to assign the whole episode or only parts of it—however, because the podcast does not have clear segments, this would be best achieved by assigning the first 10 to 20 minutes rather than a chunk in the middle of the episode.
In addition to regular episodes, the podcast occasionally features “Catch a Kite” episodes and “Extra” episodes. The term kite refers to written notes exchanged in prison, and these episodes are based around listener questions received via postcards. While these episodes have content that may be relevant to students in some courses—for example, what is the first day in prison like (episode 5), how do prisoners get information about the outside world (episode 16), and how do deaf people navigate prison (episode 34)—the mixed-bag approach in these episodes can make them trickier to assign as course material. Episodes titled “Extra” give updates on the podcast and the producers, which are usually not relevant to course work. An important exception to this is an update announcing the co-host Earlonne Woods’s commutation (“Big News: It’s Time”) and a follow-up episode where he interviews California governor Jerry Brown, who made the commutation decision (“Bonus: Road Trip”): These extras provide insight on criminal justice policy and clemency that pair with the full episode where his commutation and reentry are discussed in detail (“Episode 26: Bittersweet”).
Overall, Ear Hustle is well-produced, accessible, appealing to a broad audience, and suitable for undergraduate and graduate students of all levels. Students can listen to the podcast on the Ear Hustle website (www.earhustlesq.com) or by using an app, like Stitcher or iTunes. Episodes can also be downloaded in mp3 format, allowing instructors to embed them into a learning management system. In addition, transcripts of all episodes are available on the Ear Hustle website, making the content of this podcast accessible to all students. This podcast does not require any prior knowledge, and any special terms used, including technical or policy jargon as well as prison slang, are always explained by the hosts. It also creatively incorporates music and sound design, which will likely be appealing to many students. Music created by people incarcerated at San Quentin State Prison is incorporated into every episode, and some episodes are exclusively dedicated to music (for example, see “Episode 31: Inside Music”). Because this podcast is recorded and produced in a prison, the everyday sounds of prison life, like sounds from the yard and announcements through the PA system, are creatively woven into the storytelling. However, producing a podcast in a prison is not without challenges—the producers must navigate careful rules and regulations, and the production schedule can be affected by external reasons, such as the prison going into lockdown. The hosts openly discuss these challenges, giving listeners insight into their production and creative process.
When using this podcast in an educational setting, there are some things instructors should be cautious of. First, this podcast primarily documents the experiences at one prison, the San Quentin State Prison in San Francisco, California. Even though the podcast occasionally mentions experiences in other settings, including jails and other prisons, the podcast primarily relies on stories, events, and experiences that place at San Quentin. Therefore, it is important to remind students that the experiences discussed in the podcast cannot be readily generalized to other prisons and that significant differences exist in incarceration, including in available resources, services, and opportunities (Wildeman, Fitzpatrick, and Goldman 2018) and demographic composition and state policies (Phelps and Pager 2016). Second, the podcast does not provide much history or context of mass incarceration. Therefore, instructors should use the podcast in tandem with lectures and readings about mass incarceration in the United States that provide students with broader context. Finally, many episodes in this podcast include difficult topics, including victimization, abuse, and other events that may be triggering for some students. Instructors should consider providing appropriate content warnings and arrange for alternative assignments or readings for students when necessary (Cares, Williams, and Hirschel 2013).
Mass incarceration is a fundamental institution in U.S society and a driver of inequality with far-reaching consequences, making it a topic that needs to be addressed in most sociology courses. Ear Hustle is an excellent resource for demonstrating the impacts and costs of incarceration, making it a valuable addition to the course work and likely something that students will take with them and continue to engage with beyond the classroom.