Two weeks between episodes is an eternity! Why does it take so long?

. . .

We appreciate listeners wanting to hear more episodes more often, but please keep in mind that producing a podcast from inside a prison (without internet or phone access) takes much more time than producing one on the outside. This has been a learning process for all involved, and while our systems are improving, it’s still a ton of work to get each episode publish-ready.



Is Ear Hustle censored by San Quentin State Prison (SQSP) authorities?

. . .

Every Ear Hustle episode is approved by prison administration as a matter of policy concerning outgoing media of any form from San Quentin. The administration has shown great support for Ear Hustle, and we see no indication that they will make it difficult for us to pursue the podcast we’ve outlined from the start, sharing stories about day-to-day life in prison. We are not concerned about this need for approval compromising the content or integrity of the show.



Are the inside producers getting paid?

. . .

Ear Hustle was created and is produced as a labor of love. All monies earned through sponsorships and donations are invested directly back into the project to cover the cost of production. To date, revenue does not cover the entire cost of producing the show; PRX absorbs the extra expenses.



In following institutional protocol from CDCR, Ear Hustle is not allowed to directly pay the men working on the show. Beyond monetary compensation, the men involved with Ear Hustle production are learning marketable skills that can help them job search once they leave prison.



Additionally, once Ear Hustle is earning steady revenue, we intend to donate a portion of this to the Prison University Project, the program that Nigel first worked with when she began volunteering at San Quentin in 2011.



I heard that Earlonne was released from San Quentin a while back. Where can I find out more?

. . .

It's true! The day before Thanksgiving 2018, then-California Governor Jerry Brown commuted Earlonne's sentence, and Earlonne was released from San Quentin on Nov. 30, 2018. You can hear more about it in this bonus episode.



Earlonne is now employed by PRX as a full-time producer with Ear Hustle, and is busy reporting on re-entry stories and daily life for formerly incarcerated people, while also documenting his own experiences. He still co-hosts the show with Nigel.



How can I collaborate with Ear Hustle?

. . .

Thank you so much for the interest, but to be honest, most likely, you can’t. It’s not possible to bring collaborators into San Quentin State Prison regularly, nor to connect via internet or phone with the men inside. Besides the logistical challenges of collaborating, while there are many people on the outside pursuing excellent journalism and storytelling about prison culture and reform, with Ear Hustle we are committed to producing stories from and giving voice to the men on the inside. And while we have expanded to include stories of re-entry starting with season four, we are not, at this time, taking pitches related to this subject.



In general, due to the unique nature of our production, we do not respond to outside requests or pitches for material.



Do you have transcripts of the episodes?

. . .

Yes! You can find transcripts of each episode on our transcripts page.



How can I support Ear Hustle?

. . .

Thanks for your interest in this! You can always donate to the show, to support what we’re doing, and help keep us Hustling into the future. If you’d like to send a physical check, please make it out to PRX, Inc., put “Ear Hustle” in the memo line and send it to:



PRX

P.O. Box 382234

Cambridge, MA 02238



Would you or your company like to sponsor Ear Hustle? Just contact Radiotopia and they will hook you up.



Can I get Ear Hustle merch?

. . .

Yes you can. We have T-shirts, mugs and stickers available. Order yours today!



Does purchasing merch support the Ear Hustle team directly?

. . .

As explained above, we are not able to directly pay the men working on Ear Hustle. But we do donate 25% of all proceeds from merch to San Quentin's Prison University Project, the program that Nigel first worked with when she began volunteering there in 2011. The rest of the proceeds from merch go toward supporting production of the show.



How can I write a letter directly to the guys who tell their stories in Ear Hustle?

. . .

Prison rules prohibit Nigel from passing on any letters, but you can find all the information you'll need — an inmate's CDCR (California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation) number and the prison address — yourself.



You can locate any inmate's CDCR number on the CDCR website, and find San Quentin’s address and instructions on their site, as well.



And you'll find the names of the men featured in our stories on each episode page, in the show notes.



Can Ear Hustle pass along my message to one of the guys featured in an episode?

. . .

Sorry, but we’re not able to relay messages, discuss or speculate about any activity within the San Quentin facility.



How can I write a letter to an incarcerated person at another prison?

. . .

It's great that you want to start writing letters to incarcerated people! Unfortunately, we can’t provide guidance on specific pen pal programs, because we simply don’t know enough about each individual one. We encourage you to do careful research and vet pen pal programs thoroughly before giving them your information.



I love the music featured on Ear Hustle. Is there any way to listen to it outside of the podcast episodes?

. . .

Right now, music featured on Ear Hustle is not available for download outside of podcast episodes. But, you can stream some of the songs from our episodes on the music page of our website.



I live in the Bay Area and would like to volunteer at San Quentin. How can I get involved?

. . .

That's great! Here are a few programs you can look into at SQSP:

- Insight Prison Project

- Prison University Project

- The San Quentin Trust

- California Reentry Program

- Insight Garden Program



I'm all caught up on Ear Hustle episodes. What should I listen to next?

. . .

We're so glad you've tuned in for all of our episodes! Have you tried any of the other podcasts on our network, Radiotopia? We recommend starting with the "Doing Time" series the shows produced to welcome us to the network back in 2017.



If you're looking for other shows about incarceration and life in prison, check out our "Summer Listening" bonus episode for some recommendations. And here's a handy list:



- The Secret Life of Prisons, from the Prison Radio Association in the UK

- Birds Eye View, made by women in the Darwin Correctional Centre in Australia

- Uncuffed, produced by men incarcerated at Solano and San Quentin state prisons in California for KALW

- Life on the Outside, produced by Lucy Copp

- Caught, stories about the juvenile justice system

- Decarceration Nation, about mass incarceration and the people impacted by it

- In The Dark Season 2, the investigative podcast looks at the case of a man tried six times for the same crime

- Pelican Bay UNLOCKED, produced by people incarcerated at Pelican Bay State Prison in California

- Prison Bag, a woman tells her story of having a husband in prison

- “Prison Diaries” from Radio Diaries, first-person stories about life in prison

- 70 Million, a podcast about criminal justice reform

- Supervision, a four-part series about life on parole, produced by NHPR

- Unprisoned, a podcast and radio show about the human impacts of incarceration

- With(in) Podcast, a collaboration between the University of Denver Prison Arts Initiative and the Colorado Department of Corrections

- Mass Exoneration, about people convicted of crimes they didn’t commit, in collaboration with the New England Innocence Project



I have a question not answered here. How can I get in touch?

. . .

You can email us or send us a postcard — and keep your ears peeled for “Catch a Kite” episodes featuring questions sent in from listeners via postcard.

