DENVER, Colo. — The first statewide prison radio station in the United States history launches Tuesday morning in Colorado.
On March 1, “Inside Wire: Colorado Prison Radio” will begin broadcasting music, stories, news, and entertainment into all facilities in the Colorado Department of Corrections (CDOC).
Reaching over 14,000 incarcerated listeners, the radio station’s goal is a tool to cultivate community and purpose inside prison.
A University of Denver Prison Arts Initiative (DUI PAI) project, the “Inside Wire” programming is created by incarcerated producers in production studios in three prisons. Prisons included are as followed:
Limon Correctional Facility (LCF)Sterling Correctional Facility (SCF)Denver Women’s Correctional Facility (DWCF)
There’s such a wealth of stories and perspectives behind the walls… Radio is the perfect medium for this environment. We really believe that listening and sharing are essential human acts, both in and out of prison.
Ryan Conarro, DUI PAI staff member and Indie Wire’s General manager and Program Director
With 24-hour programming scheduled, the radio station will include a weekday morning music show out of LCF; a daily “audio bulletin board” called “Hotlines,” featuring announcements and news for listeners.
Additionally, the station will offer a range of narrative features, including “Behind the Mic, One Tune,” and “Wired Up.”
As well as the weekly show “Up to the Minute with Dean Williams,” billed as “an unfiltered conversation between residents and the CDOC executive director.”
The reality is that 90-95% of incarcerated people will be released from prison and return to communities as our neighbors… It’s important that through programs like Inside Wire, incarcerated people have the opportunity to maintain a sense of connection with each other, with the community, and have a purpose and focus in their life while they are serving their time.
Dean Williams, executive director of the Colorado Department of Corrections
“Inside Wire” reaches incarcerated listeners via the CDOC closed-circuit TV network.
The public can listen to the simultaneous signal HERE, and on the “Inside Wire” app on Apple and Android.
