Get Out of Jail, Inc.

Sarah Stillman – Get Out of Jail, Inc.
New Yorker
2014

Description and Analysis

This article is about the different ways in which alternatives to prisons and jails operate.  Although the problem addressed in the article centers on the unfair profiting of these companies, and that it is a nationwide problem, this article focuses squarely on programs in the south. I don’t find anything irrelevant or nefarious about Stillman’s work, and this article is representative.

In essence, this article is the type that commands no controversy at all.  I found none.  The individual pieces are grim, and I’m sure there are more out there, but I think the piece represents everything fully. I can’t say this article is the best-constructed of her work, and I do get slightly confused at points – differentiating between systems, the places, the scams – but it is still better than most’s work.

Reaction

Kevin Townsend, a data journalist for Buzzfeed and Slate, writes his impressions of the story, mostly on the writing style, found here

Rich Couch reviews the industry for his blog Let’s Talk About Books and Politics, found here

“BlankSheet” of Crosstalk on Kinja submitted his report on the article, found here

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