Interviews To gain information about a story, like a live

interview To gather information to put in a story and

generate sound bites As a program content segment – ‘soft news’

Interviews To find the sound bite “gems,” journalists

must conduct thoughtful and thorough interviews with credible sources

Good interviews contribute a lot to a news story: Immediacy of the information Create a mood Give essential detail Interpret events Add flavor to the story

Good interviews contribute to a good show

Interviews Skilled interviewers:

Ask insightful questions Ask questions at the right

time Probe for honest

answers without offending

*This comes from knowing as much as possible about the source before doing an interview

Interviews Good interviewers

write a few key words and plan for only their first four or five questions - the rest of the interview comes from the dialogue exchange, based on planned questions and content

interested you?background?qualifications?

stance on…future?

Interviews Tough questions…

are warranted but can also offend the audience if asked without just cause

Play hardball with the interviewees who try to “dodge” the issues

Don’t ambush

Interviews Avoid Yes/No questions or questions that “lead”

sources to only answer a certain way Ask questions that require an articulate response Ask questions that require a focused response

Avoid saying “I see” or “uh-huh.” This may indicate an understanding to the

interviewee, but the audience may assume you are agreeing.

Also creates audio and transition problems

Interviews Avoid asking two-part questions

One or both parts may be forgotten and it may allow the interviewee a chance to avoid unwanted questions

Avoid obvious questions It is a waste of time for you, the interviewee and the

audience

Avoid questions of bad taste Be sensitive to a situation - let your conscience and

sense of humanity guide you

Interviews Put your sources at ease with these

techniques: Appear relaxed yourself

Prepare interviewees before you begin; let them know what story is about and what to expect

Use constant eye contact

Be a conscientious listener

Encourage the camera crew to consider the interviewee

Keys to interviewing success Break the ice with questions you do not

intend to use Start a conversation so the source gets comfortable talking

with a mic and camera

Jot down two or three key questions for reference This will help you remember what information you are

seeking, no matter where the conversation may try to take you

Know when to shut up Nothing is more annoying than watching the interviewer ask

questions that are longer than the answers

Keys to success Ask a subject to explain an important point again

This will serve two purposes - ensure you get the key points AND send the signal to the interviewee that you care about important information and want to get it right. This will also help sources have faith in your reporting

Always remember the goal … to elicit a powerful, concise statement from a credible source that will enhance the information for the audience Using sources to provide “evidence” for the facts with their

comments is crucial for strong reporting

Interviews & SoundbitesA good soundbite should reflect reality:

Provide factual information Help prove a visual is reality Reveal the person’s inner self - who they are,

what they believe, what they think

How long should a soundbite be?

Soundbites

Electronic media have the power to… Involve the audience psychologically and

physiologically because of the dramatic effect of sound and motion

This is most commonly done through the soundbite…

Soundbites SOUNDBITES = a short excerpt from an

interview, news conference or spontaneous comment aired as part of a broadcast A source speaking on camera adds a different

dimension to the script Provides credibility to the news report

how do we get those soundbites?…

Interviews & Soundbites Soundbites are the

electronic journalists’ version of direct quotes “Soundbites

should be no longer than 12 seconds.”

Interviews & Soundbites LEAD-INS

The sentence of copy that leads into a soundbite in a radio or television report

TAGS The sentence or two

of copy that immediately follows a TV or radio soundbite

“The lead-in should last about 15 seconds.”

“The tag should be no more than 10 seconds.”

Lead-ins, TagsExample

Lead-in: Blazing out of control for three days, forest fires have caused the Sonora

residents to evacuate their homes.

Soundbite: “We stayed as long as we could before firefighters practically dragged

us out of our houses and away from the neighborhood.

Tag: Officials estimate it could be seven to ten more days before it is safe for residents

to move back in to their homes.

Editing soundbites Pull out the gems

allow them to illustrate the essence of the story

Save only the useful nuggets cut and then cut again to make sure you are only using the

best part

Do not “parrot” the soundbite in a lead-in Words used in the lead-in should be unique and not a repeat

of what listeners will hear in the soundbite

Write “bridges” (or audio links) between clips You need transitions between voice overs and soundbites

so report sounds smooth

Editing the soundbite Almost NEVER start a soundbite with the reporter’s

question

The focus should be entirely on the interviewee, so his/her voice should be the only one on tape

Use the lead-in to help listeners understand the context for the soundbite

In the RARE event that the reporter’s question is on tape, the lead-in should introduce the reporter and the interviewee so listeners are prepared to hear two people speaking

Interview ShowsPersonality, Opinion, InformationFully scripted, ad-lib, semi-scriptedShow content

Open: name of show, your name, guest name, brief bio, show overview (close)

Balance, conversationAddressing the cameraOpen/close, primary/follow-up questions

Studio InterviewsSemi-scripted – follow sample script Information InterviewSee book and online about hand signalsHalf-way through / restatementKnowing when to start wrapping, not

end early or go overPracticeSign up and script deadlines