Interviewing Tips

by Vicki Meade

ot everyone gets to learn interviewing skills from one of the nation's greats, but Pat Piper, who has written two books with popular talk show host Larry King and used to produce King's radio show, has absorbed tricks of the trade from a pro. Unfortunately, what works for Larry King won't always work for the average interviewer, Piper cautioned in his talk, "Asking the Right Questions."

It's commonly understood that interviewers should learn as much as possible in advance about the person they're interviewing and the subject to be discussed. "But Larry King says, ‘I want to be at the same level as my audience, so I don't prepare,'" Piper explained. "Most of us, however, can't operate like Larry King."

Bits of Piper's wisdom:

• Keep your questions short. Long questions are often confusing.
• Avoid the word "I" in your questions. The interview is about them, not you.
• Develop ways to probe a person's views or sensitive subjects without seeming adversarial. Some of King's favorite lines are "How do you explain all that has happened in the past week?" "How do you feel about..." and "Do you ever wish you could be somewhere else?"
• If you're asking a critical question and the person doesn't want to answer, break the question into pieces to try to get at the response from different directions. If the interviewee hems and haws with reluctance, you can say, "Okay, we'll come back to that," and move on. But remember to go back to it.
• If something the interviewee says contradicts facts or stories you've gotten elsewhere, use statements such as, "That flies in the face of...," or "What do you say to..."
• When the interview is over, always send a thank you note.

Vicki Meade
Meade Communications
1013 Jackson Street
Annapolis, MD 21403
410.280.6430 (voice and fax)
vicki@meadecomm.com