We are moving on to interviews. An interview is a conversation between a journalist and the interviewee. Question-answer, question-answer. Typically, the interviewee is an expert, a public figure, or someone of societal significance. This is where the journalist’s talent and skills shine—asking the “right” questions that elicit interesting, detailed responses.
We always reassure our students first—it’s simple; there’s no need to fear the task ahead. Nowadays, anyone can conduct an interview and write a text, but how well it turns out is another matter.
Usually, an interview involves one person being questioned by a journalist. Rather than having a conversation, the journalist asks specific questions, as their own opinions or conclusions are rarely of interest. Bloggers and some YouTube journalists might draw attention to themselves or interrupt the interviewee, but a true journalist would never do that.
When choosing the subject of the interview, it is crucial to understand who they are and what the interview will be about. If the person is relatively unknown to your audience, for example, an investor funding a solar power plant, the focus should be on renewable energy and the project at hand. Should you ask such a person what books they like to read or what their son is up to? No, because that’s irrelevant.
However, if the interviewee is a well-known, creative person, such as a local popular blogger, the range of topics and questions can be broader—about their main work, personality, hobbies, etc. Their persona is of interest to people, so let’s explore it in detail.
Look at the people around you as potential interview subjects. If it’s your daughter, the focus could be on artistic gymnastics, her main activity. If it’s your grandfather, a war veteran, ask about war and peace, memories, veteran life, and benefits. Always clearly define who the interviewee is and what the main theme of the interview will be.
Always prepare your questions in advance. Listen attentively to the person, because you need to understand what they are saying and what they mean to ask follow-up questions or clarify points. Improvise; don’t limit yourself to pre-written questions. Build on their responses to come up with new ones.
During the interview, forget about yourself. We tend to focus too much on ourselves—our voice, diction, clever questions, etc. Trust me, the interviewee is not thinking about you. Your goal is not to showcase yourself but to conduct a great interview that provides valuable dialogue and plenty of quality material to work with.
Do not include everything the person said in the final interview, especially if it’s a written piece. Include only the most interesting and important parts, but don’t distort the interviewee’s words.
While a news story has a clear structure and can often be written using templates, interviews are more creative and open to interpretation. It’s hard to provide strict guidelines here.
You need to gather information about the interviewee, their organization (if applicable), and the event (if it’s tied to one). Quickly read up online on anything related to the person or topic. If there’s any handout material or press releases, study those as well. If it’s a serious and significant interview, dedicate an hour or several hours to preparation. Even at an event, improvise—take 5–10 minutes to read up beforehand.
Accept the fact that you are not a specialist in the topic being discussed. A journalist cannot be an expert in solar energy and foreign policy at the same time. You are simply a journalist—intelligent, well-read, sharp-minded, but still a journalist. That means someone who knows a little about everything but is essentially a layperson on the specific subject, asking simple questions. You are someone curious about everything, asking not overly complex or clever questions, but simple, human ones. Questions that regular people would ask the athlete, company director, or politician if they had the chance. And you do have that chance. You’re asking the questions regular people would ask.