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Don’t Expect Questions Before the Interview
By Eric Seidel
Asking a reporter for a list of questions before an interview sounds reasonable, right? After all, with a list of the reporter’s questions you can do all the proper research and come to the interview with great answers. So why did the reporter’s response sound so distant and cold when you asked? Maybe it’s because you’ve just committed a major faux pas of news interviewing.
What sounds reasonable to many people in business organizations often has a decidedly different ring in a reporter’s ears. Asking for a list of questions before an interview – especially requesting a complete set of interview questions – is a clear example. Yet business people agreeing to news interviews often to make that mistake.
Sure, having the questions ahead of time would help you prepare. But requesting a list – especially a complete list – of questions is tantamount to telling a reporter that you are putting limits and restrictions on where the interview can go, the subjects to be covered, the topics to be discussed. At least, that’s the way reporters are likely to interpret the request. Following such a practice is bound to distance you from the reporter and will almost undoubtedly make the upcoming interview adversarial, two things you should be trying hard to avoid.
Keep in mind that in any interview with the news media, the roles for interviewer and interviewee are already well established. The reporter is responsible for the questions. Your one and only job is to provide answers, or better yet, to deliver messages that your audiences will find persuasive. If you have prepared properly, you should be able to deliver those messages regardless of the questions posed during the interview.
Is this a recommendation that you go into a news media interview unprepared, with no idea of where the reporter is going or of what will be asked? Is this to say that agreeing to a news media interview means submitting yourself to a reporter’s whim or bias? Certainly not. But there is a middle ground that business people sometimes overlook.
Before going eyeball to eyeball with any reporter, you should have a clear understanding of the story he or she is working on. You should be able to anticipate the questions that will be asked and know how you will respond to them. All these things can be determined before the interview without directly asking for a list of questions. If you recognize how the news interview game is played, you’ll be able to get all the pre–interview info you need, probably directly from the reporter.
For most serious reporters, success depends on the ability to use their most important tool: the question. If you demand questions in advance, then you appear to be trying to limit the reporter’s ability to do his or her job. Besides, much of the best information that comes from any given interview is a result of questions the reporter thinks of on the spot, most often as the result of something you’ve just said. If it appears before the interview that you are trying to drop a net on that, you’re likely to face one of the most grueling interviews of your career, assuming the reporter is still willing to talk with you at all.
Why take these chances? Why not just accept that reporters are likely to be sensitive about the "list of questions" issue, and avoid this language altogether. Here’s how you do that. Here are five questions you can ask any reporter before any interview to elicit all the information you need to prepare:
- What is the angle?
Or phrased slightly differently, "What is the story?" Reporters will always approach an interview with a story angle in mind. This isn’t necessarily bias against you or your organization. Most often it is simply the reporter’s beginning expectation of how the story will come out. Even a reporter has to start somewhere. You have a right to know a reporter’s angle on any story before you submit to an interview. With this information, you have the opportunity to prepare your messages either in support of, or in opposition to that angle. Just remember that the interview itself is your opportunity to be persuasive, so don’t attempt to negotiate a more favorable playing field prior to the interview.
- What background information or research will I need to help you with your story?
In other words, what level of detail will the reporter be expecting in the interview? Will quotes from you be sufficient, or will you need to cite facts and figures from memory? This is critical, because it helps you avoid spending precious interview time saying "I don’t know," or "I’ll have to get back to you on that." Don’t be hesitant to make those statements if required in the interview. Just minimize that necessity.
- Who else are your interviewing (or have you already interviewed) for this story?
Just knowing who else is being interviewed can indirectly give you lots of information about questions 1 and 2 above. It will also give you important information about how important the story is to the reporter. Several other people being interviewed, for example, could easily indicate that the story is a major investigative piece, which tells you quite a bit about how to prepare.
- What subjects are you most interested in talking about?
A very general sounding question, perhaps, but it will often lead to insights into the reporter’s thinking about the story. If there is a genuine bias there, the answer to this question may reveal it.
- How else can I help you with your story?
Such a blanket invitation to be helpful may be turned down by the reporter, but asking this question with the sincere intention of being helpful can go a long way toward negating any hostility or antagonism between you and the reporter. Once you've agreed to talk with a reporter, don’t blow it in advance by asking for a set of questions. Instead, recognize how reporters can misinterpret language commonly used by business people. Then position yourself as being sincerely interested in helping the reporter get a balanced, full story. Use this approach, and you’ll get all the information you need to prepare for your interview.
The decision is always in your hands.
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Eric Seidel is a partner in TMT/The Media Trainers®, LLC, an Atlanta–based firm that provides training in news media interview skills and crisis communication. You can contact The Media Trainers® at 770–971–6619.
