HeyJaredReality Behind Bars
Reality Behind Bars discusses incarceration by analyzing documentaries and reality television. Hosted by a college professor and a formerly incarcerated educator, the show aims to separate entertainment from reality.Each episode examines popular shows about prison life—asking…
- Indexed episodes, last 90 days
- 20
- Latest publication
- Sep 10, 2026
- Audience
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- Earliest in this view
- Jul 7, 2026
Latest episodes
Time: The Kalief Browder Story Part 5 (Netflix, 2017) (opens the original)
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In this episode of Reality Behind Bars, Ashley and Carolyn continue their discussion of the Kalief Browder docuseries with Part Five, “Injustice for All.” After spending nearly three years incarcerated at Rikers Island without being convicted of a crime, Kalief is finally released but freedom does not mean the end of his incarceration experience. The episode examines the devastating challenges Kalief faced during reentry after incarceration, including trauma, isolation, mental health struggles,
60 Days In S3E4 (A&E, 2017) (opens the original)
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What happens when you’re forced to live in a tiny space with someone you didn’t choose, surrounded by tension, uncertainty, and a constant lack of control? In this episode, the hosts explore the complicated relationships that develop between incarcerated people and between the undercover participants and their cellmates. Ashley and Carolyn discuss the various cellmate issues happening in the South Annex block that houses the women. Iesha and Lyric have additional physical conflict, raising quest
Time: The Kalief Browder Story Part 4 (Netflix, 2017) (opens the original)
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What happens when a criminal justice system fails at every level? In part four of the Kalief Browder story entitled The Witness, the hosts examine the police investigation, courtroom delays, plea bargaining, eyewitness identification, solitary confinement, and mental health care that shaped Kalief Browder’s experience of incarceration. Ashley and Carolyn break down how the case moved from an investigation into a stolen backpack to years of incarceration without a conviction. The episode explores
60 Days In S3E3 (A&E, 2017) (opens the original)
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In this solo episode of Reality Behind Bars, Ashley breaks down 60 Days In Season 3, Episode 3: "Trust Issues," exploring the realities of jail culture through the experiences of the newest participants entering Fulton County Jail. From the booking process to life inside the men's and women's housing units, this episode examines how trust, survival, and social dynamics develop during incarceration. Ashley analyzes the psychological differences between men's and women's incarceration, highlightin
Time: The Kalief Browder Story Part 3 (Netflix, 2017) (opens the original)
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In this solo episode of Reality Behind Bars, Ashley continues the discussion of Time: The Kalief Browder Story with an in-depth examination of solitary confinement, one of the most controversial practices in the American correctional system. Using Kalief Browder's experience at Rikers Island as a case study, this episode explores the devastating psychological effects of prolonged isolation, why experts, including the United Nations, consider extended solitary confinement to be a form of torture,
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