RGC - Interviewer Techniques

Techniques Used by the Best Interviewers

Listen. The single most important thing for an interviewer is the ability to listen to what the person is saying. It's the one skill that the best interviewers have that most distinguishes them from all of the rest. Forget the list of prepared questions. Start with a prepared question based on what it is you are interviewing the person about, listen to the answer and follow from there.

Focus. Why are you doing this interview? Why this person? What action is this person performing or what action does this person represent and why? Does this person matter to the story? If not then don't take up their time. The concept of building a focus for the story is so essential and so basic that it is a seminar course in its own. Poor news, entertainment, current affairs, sports, and other stories can invariably be traced to reporters and editors having a poorly defined focus, or even no focus at all. There has to be a clear and direct point to every story.

Research. No reporter should start any story without basic research. As basic as knowing the person's name. Many many reporters end up their interviews by asking the person how to spell their first or last names as a guise to cover their ignorance of just who it was they had been talking with. the same goes for positions and titles. Basic also includes a knowledge of what has been reported before, and knowledge of the conditions surrounding the events which led the reporter to start the story in the first place. The old lawyer's adage of "never ask a question if you don't know the answer" is a good general rule and it reinforces the need for research.

Start at the Top. Good reporters never assume that the top person involved in a story is unavailable. If the story needs someone senior to represent the views of an organization then go to the top and ask the very most senior person for an interview. Work down from there.

Persist. If requests for an interview go unanswered, if the phone calls are not being returned, if the walls are up, then keep trying. In most cases the people at the other end will give in to your request if only to ease their own embarrassment.

Ethics. Always identify yourself as a journalist and state clearly that you are seeking information. You can pull the dishonesty tricks if you want but you won't go far in the business and you will have a pretty small number of sources to call on for other stories.

Take Notes. Whether you are working for radio, television or print you should always take notes, even if there is tape of some kind running. Notes save an immense amount of time after the interview in identifying those sections which are most germane to the story. A surprising number of print reporters will conduct interviews without doing an adequate series of notes and that is why so many people complain of being misquoted or being taken out of context. Good notes save reporters from themselves. There are some situations where the presence of a notepad will inhibit an interview subject but until you can handle a basic well focused interview and the skills that go with it there's no point in worrying about the subtleties.

Admit Ignorance. If you don't understand something said during the interview then ask for explanation. Whenever you get into an area that you know little or nothing about the most disarming and effective thing you can say is, "I'm sorry, I just don't understand this. Forgive my ignorance but just what does xxxxx mean?" This often, especially with politicians, results in them revealing more than they would to an interviewer who is up on the subject. Time after time you will find the real news contained within the so-called explanation. But be honest. Don't try to use this as a trick unless you truly are an accomplished interviewer and journalist because you will be found out.

Don't Talk. This is a terrifically useful tool little used by interviewers, especially in boradcast where there is an in built although unecessary need to avoing dead air. Whenever the person you are interviewing has clearly not answered a question honestly or more likely, completely, resist the temptation to through another question. Give if three seconds or longer if you can. Invariably the person will start to add to what they said and it is after these pregnant pauses that the most meaningful and revealing thoughts come out. This requires practice just as any advanced tool but be aware of it and its power.

Stay on the Record. Unless you are an experienced journalist with a sound understanding of the principles behind such labels as "off the record", "not for attribution", "for background only", don't mess around. These days prominent interview subjects are schooled in what these things mean and if you get it wrong you will be ina lot of trouble. Far too many reporters don't understand how these conventions should be used. As a result, a skilled interview subject can manipulate you into pronouncing one of these magic slogans in such a way that you are prevented from reporting the very thing you set to report. The Mechanics of Interviewing Seminar goes into considerable detail about how to use these conventions.

>> top

Main, Services, Expertise, Writing, Contact