Even in 2023, media persons might be averse to adding uncomfortable yet essential questions in a media interview for fear of getting under vociferous public scrutiny or their words being taken out of context. However, such an approach will not take anyone far, as the crux of media and journalism is to push boundaries and ask relevant questions, even if they create a stir.
Iit is essential to improve one’s interviewing skills and add difficult questions during a media interview by taking help from media training in Toronto. But, what are the steps you can take on an individual level to ask and add challenging questions at a media interaction? Let us find out!
Here are 3 simple strategies to add difficult questions during a media interview:
1. Research the Interview Topic and Your Subject
Before any media interview, research the topic of the interview and conduct a thorough background investigation of the subjects appearing in the interview. You should be researching the topic first and then moving ahead to your subject. Evaluate their online presence and see where they have been quoted and on what topics. Such a preemptive examination helps to determine if the interviewee is the right fit for the topic you are considering.
One pro tip to ask difficult questions during a media interaction is to try and break the ice. How can you do that? Chеck thе social mеdia of thе intеrviеwее so that you havе somеthing to talk about during thе bеginning of thе mеdia intеraction. For extra assistance, an online course of corporate media training can help.
2. Gauge the Mode of the Interview
On paper and in theory, in-person interviews are ideal. But, they are not always possible or sometimes do not make the most sense. So, keep your options open – phone interviews, email interviews, video interviews – there is a wide range of medium to choose from.
To ask difficult and challenging questions in the right way, you have to create an environment conducive to challenges. So, build a rapport with the interviewee immediately and check if they are feeling at ease, say in a phone interview. If not, then give them the choice to switch. It is a nice gesture that will not only ensure that the interviewee is more comfortable but also makes them amenable to difficult questions and interrogations.
3. Consider your Questions
Last but not least, while going into an interview, you do not want to read off a list of questions. But, what you should prioritise is a set of key questions ready to ask. These are the questions that you must ask in the media interview for thorough reporting on the topic. To find how to tweak difficult questions into seemingly easy-going ones, corporate media training can help.
But, simultaneously, it is essential to let the flow of organic communication remain intact. Let the interaction and your interviewee’s answers take the front seat and embrace the spontaneity of the moment. This is why media training in Toronto always tells their students to embrace impromptu questions and answers and seize the moment.
So, there it was, a simple overview on how to add difficult questions during a media interview.
