Getting  the  Goods:  Interviews  that  Work  

Jacqui  Banaszynski  Knight  Chair  in  Editing  at  the  University  of  Missouri  

May  8-­‐9,  2013  

THE MASTERS: Metzler, Sawatsky •  KEN METZLER: Longtime

professor and author from University of Oregon. Wrote ‘Bible’ of interviewing texts.

•  JOHN SAWATSKY: Canadian investigative reporter and university professor; ESPN interviewing coach

•  Studied and shared wisdom about effective questions

POWER OF WHAT? HOW? WHY?

•  WHAT questions seek more information, scene, anecdote.

•  HOW questions get at explanation and causality.

•  WHY questions get at motivation, attitude, character, opinion.

Photo by flickr user Andreas Kollegger

LET’S WORK ON QUESTIONS •  ASSIGNMENT: Interview a

50-something factory worker who lost his job in the recession. He’s not old enough to retire, not young enough to retrain. Your curiosity:

How does it feel to be in your situation?

Photo by flickr user Workers4America

Let’s find questions that help him answer. Frame your interest in What? How? Why? questions.

TIP 1: REVEAL EMOTION and CHARACTER

•  Ask not how people feel (or think) but what they do.

–  What did you do on the last day at work? Right after you locked the doors for the last time?

•  Ask about specific moments or actions.

–  What was your favorite day on the job?

•  Put questions in a frame. –  What will you miss most? –  If there are three things you could have

done differently, what would they be?

Photo by flickr user merfam

THE MASTERS: Isabel Wilkerson on “Accelerated Intimacy”

•  Interviewing as relationship •  Interviewing as multi-phase

process •  Approach and attitude more

important than specific questions –  Audition for the right subject/

storyteller –  Create partners –  Create storytellers

POLL QUESTION 1 What are the primary reasons people are motivated to talk to reporters?

Photos by flickr users Reporter de Futuro and Reporter do Futuro

TIP 2: CREATE PARTNERS •  Give subjects a

reason to invest and trust. – Tap their

motivation. •  Demystify your

process, but keep needed control.

Photo by flickr user Studio Roosegaarde

What does off-the-record mean?

POLL QUESTION 2

Photo by rpongsaj

TIP 3: NEGOTIATE TERMS UP FRONT

•  Don’t assume shared understanding or agreement.

•  Explain your purpose, process and context.

•  Determine source concerns. –  Ask questions to find solutions.

Photo by flickr user Victor1558

TIP 4: DIFFERENTIATE SOURCES, RELATIONSHIPS & ETHICS

•  Officials, public figures, experts, celebrities –  Equal players, power dynamics

•  Vulnerable – Considerations of ethics, ID, credibility and compassion

•  Ordinary folk – Context and “informed consent”

Photo by flickr user jturn

POLL QUESTION #3 How/where do you do the majority of your interviews?

Photo by flickr user Shine 2010 - 2010 World Cup good news

TIP 5: SPEND TIME, SLOW DOWN •  Plan ahead to maximize

time. •  Pace the interview with

your notebook.

•  Give people time to think, remember, articulate.

•  Probe and peel. -- With What? How? Why? questions

Photo by flickr user sskennel

TIP 6: FOR EVERY QUESTION, ASK 5 MORE

•  Be an active, interested listener. •  Listen and develop storyteller questions:

–  “Start at the beginning.” –  “Give me an example.” –  “Tell me about a time.” –  “Tell me more.” –  “Uh huh.” “Wow.” Hmmm.” –  Really? Really! Really.

Photo by flickr user gmilldrum

TIP 7: KEEP SHUT UP

•  Let silence work for you….

LET’S WORK ON QUESTIONS •  ASSIGNMENT: You must do a

deadline interview/profile of a local artisan who won a MacArthur Genius Grant. He handcrafts bows for stringed instruments, and has found a way to bridge the best of old-world standards and modern music expectations.

Photo by flickr user Eduardo Francés Bruno - Luthier

Your curiosity: What was your reaction, and what, exactly is it you do that makes you so smart? What questions could help you gather color, emotion and sparkling quotes very quickly?

TIP 8: SEEK OUT “NATIVE HABITAT” •  Try to interview or envision

people in the context that informs the story purpose.

•  Set a scene or see action. •  Notice meaningful details or

surroundings. •  Use props or artifacts as

storytelling prompts. –  Photographs, books, personal

treasures –  Status details (report out for

relevancy)

Photo by flickr user U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Northeast Region

TIP 9: REPORT WITH ALL SENSES •  Pay attention not just to what

the person says but to… –  Other sounds –  Sights –  Touch –  Taste –  Smell Use sensory detail to paint

scenes or to prompt better questions.

Photo by flickr user gingerbydesign

And the SIXTH SENSE •  Pay attention to your own

emotion or perception. – Tap your humanity. –  Inform reader reaction/

curiosity through your own. – Channel it into better

questions.

Poll Question #4 •  On average,

how long are most of your interviews?

Photo by flickr user wwarby

TIP 10: BE COLUMBO •  Always do a second interview. •  Move to a close, then reopen.

–  Linger and listen. –  Ask what is most important to know or

understand. –  Ask for elaboration on a gap in your

notebook. –  Ask whom else to talk to or what

others would say.. •  Use fact-checking as a second

interview. •  ALWAYS ask… “How do you know?” Photo copyright NBC Universal

Television

TIP 11: DARE TO BE STUPID •  Ask what you don’t know or

don’t understand. •  Ask what you think you know

that you might not. •  Clarify terms, jargon,

understanding. –  Restate it in your own

language or understanding. •  Seek plain-speak analogies

or examples. Photo by flickr user Candie_N

QUESTIONS?

•  Email: Banaszynskij@missouri.edu

•  Twitter: @JacquiB

Photo by flickr user Marco Bellucci