TJ’s Insights

Why is it that major business and political business leaders often insist on doing recorded TV interviews instead of live interviews? Because they think this gives them more “control.”

Of course, I am all in favor of trying to control the outcome of a media interview. But the second you consent to a recorded interview that is going to be edited, you lose a tremendous amount of control unless the people who are doing the editing are on your payroll.

Most people make one of two fundamental mistakes when it comes to asking questions of the reporter who is about to interview them.

#1. They ask “what questions are you going to ask?” or “can you send me, in advance, the questions you are going to ask?” This is a blunder because most journalists hate this. Correction, most journalists HATE when people ask them for the questions in advance.

Why? Because journalists either don’t want to tip their hands, they don’t feel it is ethical to give their sources this information, their employers may actually forbid them from giving the questions in advance, or they just don’t know what questions they want to ask yet (this last reason is the most common).

Journalist, “Are you excited about your company’s new product lines for the coming year?”

CEO, “Yes.”

Ouch! There’s not much a journalist can do with an answer like that when it comes to weaving the response into an edited story. True, the CEO didn’t say anything to get him or herself into trouble. But the answer fails to stand on its own—the answer doesn’t mean anything to anyone who didn’t hear the question. And in an edited TV, radio or print article, no one will see the question. Hence, the answer is useless.