Interviewing skills

Interviewing 101 What is an interview?

• A conversation between a source and the reporter for the purpose of gathering the persons feelings on a subject.

• The interview is the life of your story. Without a good interview you do not have a good story.

• This is your time to observe your subject in their environment and get a feel for who they are and how they feel about the event you are covering.

• The interview is where you get personal quotes and general information for your story

There are three basic types of interviews: Fact interview: Call your source and get the Who, What, When, Where, Why and How before the next step Personal Interview: When you meet with a person to discuss their feelings about a subject. You should prepare for these but the subject may lead the interview Group interview: There are two types of these interviews: A. Man on the Street: This is when you ask the same question to several random people to get a viewpoint on a particular subject B. Press Conference: You may ask questions to several people selected for the subject to be covered while other reporters ask questions. You may use all answers given for writing your story.

Before the Interview Day: Research: Find out as much as you can about the story you are interviewing for and the person you will interview.

Plan your questions: You should prepare at least 20 questions that will get your subject to express feeling about the subject you are covering. There are four types of questions to ask during the interview: icebreaker, open ended, close ended(We will discuss these in the next slide.)

Rehearse: Ask the questions out loud to make sure you feel comfortable asking the questions. This will give you a feel for what to expect in the interview. HINT: Look in a mirror and ask the questions to eliminate any unnecessary gestures.

The day of the interview: Introduction: This is your opportunity to make the interviewee comfortable with you. The following are a few things that you must do during the introduction.

Who are You: Make sure to identify yourself fully and greet your interviewee politely. Ex. Hi! I am James Rich. I am a reporter for Panther Prints, I am here today to interview you for our story about the football teams recent success.

Ice Breaker Questions: These are conversational questions to make the interviewee comfortable with you as a reporter.

Ex. So coach what did you think about that big Cowboys win Sunday.

Asking questions during the interview Three types of questions: Open Ended questions, Close Ended Questions and Follow-up questions Open Ended Questions: These questions ask for more than Yes or No as a response.

A. Elaboration: This is when you take many notes while the interviewee is giving you his/her feelings.

Ex. What would you say was the key to you defeating The Bears last week. Why did you change from the run to the pass offense last week.

Asking questions during the interview: Closed Ended Questions: These questions ask for a yes or no or for a one word response.

• When not to ask these: Do not ask these during the interview. Save them for last.

• What should they be used for. These should be used for such things as verifying information: Name, title etc. They can also be used for getting facts. Ex. How long will the starting quarterback be out of play?

•When should I ask these: These questions should be asked as the interview closes. Never in the middle.

Asking questions during the interview: Follow-up Questions: These questions are asked to get additional feeling from the interviewee.

• These are not prepared: These questions come about during conversation with interviewee.

• What should they be used for. These questions should be used to follow an initial response from the interviewee to another question you ask. Ex. Coach you said that the quarterback will be out for three games. How will you adjust to this?

•When should I ask these: These questions should be asked immediately following the initial question.

Closing the interview: • Dead questions: Ask the interviewee a question that you really do not need to know but they will talk. This will give you a chance to look over your notes while listening to them.

• Fill in the blanks. Ask additional questions to clarify anything you found missing your notes during the dead time in the interview.

•Clarify: Ask the interviewee to verify the spelling of their name, grade level and other information. DO NOT MISSPELL A PERSONS NAME IT IS DEVASTATING.

After the interview: • Read the interview: Look at the interview for a few minutes once you get back to the room will help you with the story structure.

• What is quotable. Not everything is a direct quote. Only use your best responses from the interviewee. Ex. “I feel very comfortable with our back up quarterback,” Coach John Doe said. “There will be very little transition for the team when he starts next week.”

•What is not quotable: You will not use everything for direct quotes. Some of your interview is just general information for tying the story together. Ex. The starting quarterback will be out three weeks. The junior back up will be playing in his place.

Writing the Interview story: • Put quotes in order: Type your quotes in the order you want to use them in the story. You might try to number them.

• Write your transitions. This will come from the interview. This is when you paraphrase information given to you during the interview. The transition comes before the quote and introduces the quote.

•Look at the interview for possible first paragraphs: This could be some interesting stories that the person told you. It might also be an interesting look at the subject you are covering.

Closing comments: Name, representing and purpose A proper introduction includes: ___________________________ To make the interviewee comfortable with you, ask ___________ icebreakers Questions that ask for only one response are ___________ Close ended Questions that follow other questions are ___________ Follow up Before the interview you should ___________________________ Plan questions,research, rehearse After the interview you should ____________________________ Read interview, select quotes