Unit 36 Assignment 1

Interview techniques

Explain what the following types of questions are

and why they are used. Show examples of their use:

An open question is a question that can have a detailed answer. For example, in this interview with Quentin Tarantino, Krishnan Guru-Murphy
asks him the question Why did you want to make a movie with slavery as a theme?, then Tarantino proceeds to answer the question in
detail. Interview link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrsJDy8VjZk

A closed question is a question that has a very specific answer. For example, in this interview with Bradley Cooper, Howard Stern asks him the
question Whats the highest amount of money you got for a movie? then Cooper answers with Five million dollars for The Hangover Part II
The purpose of the interview is to promote Bradley Coopers film Limitless, as well as make audiences know more about Bradley Cooper. The
intended response the audience receive from the interview is entertainment, because the interview is more like a conversation rather than a
structured interview, an interviewing style that Howard Stern has been using for years. Interview link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mnrYR-VAFM

A single question is a question that is based on a singular subject, yet the question doesnt lead up to similar questions succeeding it. For
example, in this interview with Princess Diana, Martin Bashir asks her the question Your Royal Highness, how prepared were you for the
pressures that came with marrying into the Royal Family? then Princess Diana responds by saying she thought she was prepared despite
being only 19, and she also says she felt that she had the support from her husband-to-be The intention of the interview is to reveal the
perspective that Diana had during the current affairs at the time regarding her divorce. Panorama specialise in these kind of interviews.
Interview link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjYU7Q7hqEI

A multiple question is a question that is based on a subject, which can lead up to other questions succeeding it that is based on the same
subject as the initial question. For example, in this interview with Charlie Sheen, Andrea Canning asks him the question When was the last
time you used drugs? then Charlie Sheen answers in a very vague way. Andrea Canning then asks questions about how many drugs, how he
can survive, and if he worries or not. The audience response is supposed to be about current affairs regarding the Charlie Sheen controversy.
Interview link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5aSa4tmVNM

A direct question is a question that desires a specific answer. For example, in this interview with the murderers of Stephen Lawrence, Martin
Bashir asks them the question Did you kill Stephen Lawrence? The purpose of the interview is to extract information about the murder of
Stephen Lawrence and to provoke feelings of sadness and anger to the audience. The interviewer wanted to prove to the audience that the
men did in fact kill Stephen Lawrence. Interview link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLzZxFRuNP8

A suggestive question is a question that suggests an answer. For example, in this interview with Noel Clarke, Krishnan Guru-Murthy asks him
the question Do you resist being seen as a black actor, or director? which suggests that Guru-Murthy wants to find out if Noel Clarke feels
ashamed for being black. Interview link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9sH2HkRoDc

Explain how interview styles vary depending on what

the purpose of the interview is, again give examples:
There are various different interview styles. These styles listed below are:

Hard news, which is the interview style which is hard hitting and emotional. For example, interviews about a
recently deceased person would be hard news.
Combative, which is the interview style which involves the interviewer asking offensive questions to the
interviewee, to get a particular response. For example, the interviews with the murderers of Stephen Lawrence
would be combative.
Light-hearted, which is the interview style which involves subject matter like celebrities getting married, having
children, or promoting a film theyre involved in.
Entertainment, which is the interview style which, like Light-hearted, involves celebrities, yet involves celebrity
life in general, including controversial news. For example, an interview with Lindsay Lohan from the paparazzi
would be within Entertainment.
Investigative, which is the interview style which involves the interviewer finding out information about the
interviewee. For example, Martin Bashir was trying to find out information when he had his interview with
Princess Diana.
Promotional, which is the interview style which is made to promote a product, usually a film, a TV show, or an
album. For example, an actor will attend an interview on a talk show to promote their film.

Explain how interviews are structured, explain the

purpose of each part of the interview and how
interviewees undertake each part. Give examples:
Interviews are introduced by the interviewee entering the location, then they shake the interviewers hand and sit down. There are
different introductions in other interview styles, for example for entertainment/promotional interviews, the interviewer would tell their
audience that the interviewee is about to be interviewed, then the interviewee would enter the location, they shake hands, and the
interview starts. The first few questions asked would be about how they are, if they are OK or not.
As the interview progresses, a series of questions are asked, which develop into something else. For example, an investigative interview
would have questions about finding out about things, and if the interviewee gives answers, then the interviewer will ask more questions
in order to understand the story in as much depth as possible.
An interviewer may ask questions and provide responses which boost the confidence of the interviewee, which will make the
interviewee more open to answering certain questions. For example, for entertainment interviews, the interviewer may praise the
interviewee for their contribution to the promoted product, which boosts the confidence of the interviewee, which makes the
interviewee much more comfortable to ask questions.
For every interview, there are key questions that the interviewer asks. These questions are essentially the reason why the interview was
planned in the first place: So that an interviewer can find out information that the interviewee proceeds to answer. For example, for
combative interviews, the interviewer will ask questions about why the interviewee did what they did, if they did it or not, and how it
happened.
In many interviews, a sound-bite may be used to give the audience a preview of whats to come. For example, for promotional
interviews, there will be a sound-bite of a film that the interviewee is involved in. This sound-bite is intended to make the audience
interested in the promoted product, so that they spend their money on it.
The summary is essentially what the interview is all about. For example, for the interviews between Martin Bashir and the murderers of
Stephen Lawrence, the summary is basically Martin Bashir asking the murders if they murdered Stephen Lawrence.
The windup would be at the end of the interview, when the interviewer ends the interview by saying to the interviewee Thank you for
your time, it was great having you here. Then they would both shake hands, and the interview is finished. For example, for promotional
interviews, the interviewer will say to the audience The new film staring [the interviewee] opens Friday in cinemas worldwide, then
the interviewer will speak to the interviewee and say Thank you for your time, it was great having you here.

Explain what communication skills a interviewer

needs and how they use them throughout an
interview (give examples):
A building rapport is being able to communicate with another person in a mutual way. For interviews, a
building rapport is supposed to be when the interviewer and the interviewee are getting along well, which
makes both of them feel comfortable enough to give questions and answers. For example, many of Howard
Sterns interviews have a building rapport, to the point where the interviews sound more like relaxing yet
very informative conversations. He tends to ask questions regarding the interviewees beliefs on a subject
he or she feels strongly about, then Stern would ask multiple questions relating to the subject before he
ends up talking about another subject, which could also be about what the interviewee believes in or what
they did recently.
Active listening is when the interviewer listens to the interviewee while remaining interested. Usually, the
interviewer will be nodding their head, and looking straight at the interviewee when the interviewee answers
a question. For television interviews, the interviewer has to avoid making any noises while hes listening to
the interviewee speak so that it can be easier to edit the interview in post production. An example of active
listening for investigative interviews would be when the interviewer asks an open question, then the
interviewee answers the question, while the interviewer remains silent while looking at the interviewee, and
nodding their heads to show that they are paying attention. The affect this has on the interviewee is that the
interviewee would feel respected for being listened to properly, which may encourage the interviewee to
answer in even greater depth.
Body language is how the interviewer expresses him or herself from how they move their bodies. An
interviewer would usually make sure the lower part of their body isnt moving or fidgeting so that it doesnt
distract the viewer or the interviewee. In terms of hand gestures, the interviewer may move their hands to
emphasise what they are saying. For example, in many of Krishnan Guru-Murthys interviews, he keeps his
body still, and also moves his hands to emphasise what hes saying. The affect this has on the interviewee is
that the interviewee will feel how direct the question may be, whether its a combative or light-hearted

Explain how telephone techniques

are used within interviews:
For telephone interviews, the techniques used within the interview include:
Gathering information from the interviewee. Usually, the information that the
interviewer needs to gather is regarding something quite serious, maybe even
controversial. With that being said, interviews that fit into the entertainment/lighthearted category are rarely ever done on the phone. An example of a telephone
interview regarding a controversial event includes the time when Howard Stern
interviewed Brett Ratner on the phone regarding Michael Jackson throwing water
balloons at homeless people. While the interview could fit into the entertainment
category because as the interview develops, it ends up being more about Brett
Ratners personal life which is explained in an entertaining way, the interview was
planned in the first place so that Howard Stern could understand more about the
controversial situation.
Obtaining comments from the interviewee. While gathering information is about
getting information, getting comments is more specific to what the interviewee says.
So for example, if an interviewer asks a question to an interviewee on the phone, the
interviewee would answer the question, then their answer would be quoted.

Explain how interviews are used in different

journalistic contexts; give examples from each:
Print interviews are when the interview takes place via fax. The advantage these interviews in comparison to other interviews is
that usually, there is a longer amount of time to prepare a response, unless theres a tight deadline.
Television interviews are when the interview takes place in a television studio. These kind of interviews require numerous different
skills, such as how gestures, voice, body language, and overall delivery is used. The advantage these interviews have is that they
are the most popular sort of interview for the overall demographic, so a successful television interview can boost the popularity
that the interview show usually gets.
Radio interviews are when the interview takes place in a recording studio. For this sort of interview, voice is extremely important
because the audience can only listen to what is being said. An interviewer requires energy in their voice and they have to use
vocabulary that helps the audience think up mental images.
Online interviews are when the interview takes place on a website, usually the website belongs to the interviewers company. These
interviews are like print interviews, but much more modern and accessible.
News interviews are when the interview takes place in the news studio. Unlike television interviews, news interviews cannot involve
any sort of promotion regarding products, because that is against the rules of broadcasting news programmes. These interviews
are always about a serious subject matter, sometimes hard-hitting. For example, when Krishnan Guru-Murthy interviewed Quentin
Tarantino regarding Django Unchained, Guru-Murthy asked questions regarding slavery and the violence that is presented in films,
as opposed to asking questions regarding the promotion of the actual film like how television interviews would do.
Sport interviews are when the interview takes place on any sort of medium for interviews, including those listed above and below.
Sport interviews dont fit into one particular category because its a subject for an interview, rather than a type of interview. The
approach for a sport interview would be to talk about what happened to the interviewee recently regarding sports, whether it has to
do with something like winning a game.
Feature-writers are when the interview takes place on magazines and newspapers. These interviews are the same as print and
online interviews, because all of them involve text. The way an interviewer needs to approach the interview is to be
Editorial interviews are when the interview takes place on

Explain how interviews are used for

different purposes:
research
enhancement of audience understanding
informational, e.g. presenting information
interpretive, e.g. expressing or explaining opinion,
justification, accountability
emotional, e.g. allowing audience insight to a situation