Explore every episode of the podcast Prisoncast!
| Title | Pub. Date | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| S2E3: Defining ‘rehabilitation’ | 27 Jul 2026 | 00:16:46 | |
An incarcerated scholar tells us the history of Illinois' constitutional language around the purpose of prison. Plus, people at Kewanee's low security prison each share the one thing that's helped them through their sentence. | |||
| S2E2: Inside a cell, summer is sweltering | 20 Jul 2026 | 00:16:57 | |
Many summer seasons bring excruciating heat inside Illinois prison cells. A prison watchdog group tells us what it's like to endure high temperatures behind bars. And Michael Broadway’s widow reads his poetry to mark his death during a heat wave. | |||
| S2E1: A college class behind bars learns audio reporting | 13 Jul 2026 | 00:18:46 | |
Segments about family and re-entry that were guided, from pitch to final production, by incarcerated Northwestern University students. A song recorded in a former music studio at a state prison. Plus, meet our new co-host for Season 2! | |||
| S1E7: The Catholic sister-turned-activist against the death penalty | 18 May 2026 | 00:15:32 | |
Sister Helen Prejean has been counseling people on death row since the 1980s. To mark the 15th anniversary of Illinois abolishing the death penalty, she joins Prisoncast! to make the case against capital punishment. Plus, some original music produced behind bars. | |||
| S1E6: Father and son, reunited -- behind bars | 11 May 2026 | 00:14:02 | |
An incarcerated dad asks to be transferred to a more restrictive prison so he can reconnect with his son who is locked up there. We hear original music written and recorded behind bars. And by request, sounds of a longed-for date on Chicago's Navy Pier. | |||
| S1E5: Forgiveness and a mother's love | 04 May 2026 | 00:15:25 | |
Lisa Daniels knows all about forgiveness. When her son Darren was murdered, she did what would be unthinkable for so many of us: She forgave her son’s killer. | |||
| S1E4: Is Chicago's best pizza made inside Cook County Jail? | 27 Apr 2026 | 00:20:05 | |
Making pizza, hot for delivery, inside Cook County Jail. One man's 18-year fight to get his GED. The value of education for someone serving a life sentence. | |||
| S1E3: How to make a prison pianist | 17 Apr 2026 | 00:13:13 | |
How to learn piano with toothpaste and paper. What people locked up in Illinois want you to know about them and their lives on the inside. By request: a roller coaster ride for one incarcerated listener. | |||
| S1E2: Parenting from behind bars | 17 Apr 2026 | 00:18:38 | |
Visiting one of the few in-prison nurseries in America, where incarcerated new moms get to live with their babies. Advice on parenting behind bars from formerly incarcerated moms with the Women's Justice Institute and Women Initiating New Directions (WIND). A meditation on letting go from one dad in an Illinois prison. | |||
| S1E1: A Chicago mayor walks into a prison | 17 Apr 2026 | 00:15:13 | |
What it takes to get gussied up inside Illinois prisons. How tattoo removal can be life-changing for people inside. Bringing the sounds of the family bowling alley to one incarcerated listener. | |||
| Prisoncast Trailer | 03 Apr 2026 | 00:04:10 | |
A podcast that asks: What do the 30,000 people locked up in Illinois state prisons most want to hear? | |||