A&E’s 60 Days In is a real show but one mistake gave the game away
60 Days In sends volunteers undercover into jail to progress prison reform, so how real or fake is the crime show? 60 Days In is currently in its eighth season which sees seven volunteers enter North Carolina’s Pitt County Detention Center. The cast is putting their lives on the line to investigate corruption within the […]
60 Days In sends volunteers undercover into jail to progress prison reform, so how real or fake is the crime show?
60 Days In is currently in its eighth season which sees seven volunteers enter North Carolina’s Pitt County Detention Center. The cast is putting their lives on the line to investigate corruption within the prison system under the command of Sherif Paula Dance.
Although the cast spends time behind bars, 60 Days In is still a reality show so how scripted is the A&E crime program?
Is 60 Days real or fake?
60 Days In producers have confirmed that the show is unscripted, but season 1 cast member Robert Holcomb alleges that it is cleverly edited to heighten the drama, which is expected from a reality show.
“The show was real, but the editing was fake,” Holcomb told Radar Online. “The inmates figured me out in two hours and they treated me like gold. They were the nicest group of people I had been around my entire life.”
Holcomb claimed inmates at Clark County Jail allowed him the use of their phone and computer time, magazines, and offered him drugs.
The 60 Days In star went as far as to say that inmates “treated me better than my big brother,” and alleged that A&E cameras edited the show to make it look like he was in danger.
“The show made inmates look like animals; in reality, they were kind human beings suffering from drug problems,” he explained.
Holcomb was selected for the premiere season as show creators believed he could give a fresh perspective as a teacher, but he disregarded the safety training upon stepping foot into the cell.
He was punished with one month in solitary confinement for covering a security camera with a towel to impress inmates.
Real season 1 inmate denies show’s authenticity
Holcomb’s account is corroborated by real season 1 inmate DiAundré Newby, who befriended Robert while others targeted him.
Newby was told that A&E was documenting Holcomb’s experience as a first-time inmate, but he was quickly suspicious after Robert reportedly asked if the jail aired NFL.
A key season 1 highlight was the moment DiAundré was suddenly attacked by another inmate. The show claimed that both Newby and the attacker were removed from the pod and suggested that he was a victim due to his friendship with Robert.
DiAundré, however, clarifies that the attack was retaliation after he initially assaulted the inmate for unpaid debts. Newby was removed from the pod but only for questioning and was returned after 10 minutes.
“That was actually something that did aggravate me because they took it out of context and made it seem different than what it was,” Newby said of the editing.
Six years on since his TV debut, DiAundré has remained a fan favorite as viewers continue to praise him on his Instagram account.