The Most Important Thing An Investor Should Know About Private Prisons: Who Do They Care About?

Investors have witnessed an exodus from the private prison industry but what is the core function of a private prison ‐ is it to help prisoners? Is it to help the government? Or is it to help investors? In act 1, we look at how the growth of the 80s helped build the prisons of the 2000s (2:55). In act 2, we discuss how private prisons became interwoven into our society. In act 3, we discuss the issue of incentives for private prison operators and what friction is caused by their misalignment (9:42). In act 4, the final act, we discuss the broader implications for investors that invest in private sector companies that provide a public service (28:33), all on record.