Interviewing - The professor is Ben Birkinbine PDF

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The professor is Ben Birkinbine...

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Interviews ● Now that we have covered some broader topics related to journalism and communications as a field, we can dive deeper into some specific skills-based topics. ● Three moments of interviewing ○ Pre-interview ○ During interview ○ Post-interview Before We Begin…. ● Curiosity ● Asking questions ● A simple example ● Effective interviewers are driven by a desire to learn about others perspectives, including how and why that person holds that perspective. Pre-Interview ● You’ve identified a good story idea and you’ve started researching ● You’ve identified gaps in your knowledge about the topic ● Now, you need to identify potential interview subjects who can provide the information ● If the original source is not available, try to get as close to the original source as possible. ● Once you have identified an interview subject, you will research that person before you make contact ○ It is possible that the person may already be on record disclosing the information that you seek ○ Use newspapers, public records, online profiles, biographies, trade press, etc. ● Understand the purpose of the interview ○ Quick info? Deeper, probing questions? How and where to conduct the interview. ● Contacting the source ○ Identify yourself and your affiliation ○ Given details about what you are looking for and why the person is important ● Set up the meeting ○ Best practice is to go to the source ■ Source feels comfortable ■ You can get more information from observation ● Prepare Questions ○ Use different types of questions ○ Open-Ended Questions solicit extended answers from your sources. ○ Close-Ended questions are meant to gather specific data and can be answered more definitely During Interview ● Be professional and respectful ○ Use proper titles unless told otherwise ● Ask your questions, but don’t be afraid to go off script ○ Sometimes, sticking too closely to your script will cause you to miss out on a great follow-up question

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Silence is your friend ○ Silence forces elaboration. Allow your source to fill the void. ○ Avoid the temptation to verbally acknowledge points that the speaker is making, especially if you are using audio or video recording ○ Be aware of non-verbal clues (both yourself and your interviewee) ■ Body language facial expressions, shifting bodies, etc. ○ Eye contact ■ Maintain eye contact. When taking notes, no need to capture every word, but get key words/phrases ○ Never waste a source’s time ■ Be prepared, be professional, be direct ○ Cut through the fog of obfuscation ■ Ask for clarification on vague terms and cliches ○ Avoid loaded questions ■ Loaded questions is one for which no good answer exists. They can also be based on faulty assumptions. ○ Did I miss anything important? ■ Open-ended question for end of the interview ○ Ask the sources if they can suggest any other good sources Post-Interview ● If possible, clean up your notes right away ○ Fill in the missing infor from quotes to ensure reliability ○ Write down initial impressions, additional questions, etc. You can revisit these as you continue your work to look for unforeseen connections ○ Reflect on the information you learned ● Follow-up Interviews ○ Either with source again, or others who were mentioned during the interview...