Class 2
Class 2. Interviewing…. You need at least three sources. You can aggregate some old or background content using links. But your reporting info should be original. Here’s an example: http://gawker.com/5979679/id-do-her-a-brief-history-of-michael-bloombergs-public-sexism.
Class 2
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Presentation Transcript
Interviewing…. • You need at least three sources. • You can aggregate some old or background content using links. But your reporting info should be original. Here’s an example: http://gawker.com/5979679/id-do-her-a-brief-history-of-michael-bloombergs-public-sexism
Interviewing is the Cornerstone • Use your job as armor • Let curiosity override anxiety • Do prep work to be confident • Quick! Make contact before you get psyched out. And reach out to a lot of people. • Remember that reporters make people nervous.
Email, Phone or In Person? Always in person is best. Phone second best. Email third best. Twitter/Linked In/Facebook and email a decent way to make initial contact and/or ask follow up q’s. Social networks great way to get quick crowd source response on a breaking news deadline.
Sometimes people do respond quicker by email. • But there is a lot of nuance in person. • Might be worth it to consider source preference. • Informal conversation more representative of how people really talk. • Email provides something to refer back to. • Don’t wait to hear back from someone…just go visit them or pick up the phone. • Best interviews include banter and asides which lead to more q’s. Emails can’t do this.
Explanatory Journalism • Explain things that are unanswered. In the Google age you have to answer a question that requires more than a fact to explain. Go deeper than the 5 W’s • Best explainers reflect deep original reporting. Call multiple sources. If you can’t educate yourself on a topic, you can’t educate anyone else. • Embrace basic questions. Say what were you thinking? Or what do you think? 4. Have a simple question you are trying to answer. A Slate writer asked whether the Secret Service was responsible for protecting Bo, the Obama dog.
4. You should have a simple question you are trying to answer. A Slate writer asked whether the Secret Service was responsible for protecting Bo, the Obama dog.
Make a Questions List • Obviously, you should make a list of questions, but don’t be afraid to deviate from your list. • Don’t ask “double” questions. • Make sure you get name, contact and title. • Always ask the magic question- “Is there anything I haven’t asked you that you think I should have/ think I should know.”
