Giving a Media Interview

You’ve established a relationship with a reporter, have successfully written and pitched a story, and gone through the process of developing key messages. You are now ready for the media interview.

Selecting a Spokesperson

You should coordinate with your local priesthood leader to determine a spokesperson. The designated spokesperson in a stake is the stake president. However, the stake president can delegate this responsibility as needed. Choosing a spokesperson will depend entirely on the nature of the story and the information that needs to be communicated. The spokesperson should be articulate and comfortable speaking with media. 

Preparation

Remember to utilize the “Interview Prep List” (see Determining the Message) to develop key messages for your interview and anticipate possible questions. The key to an effective interview is to know ahead of time what you want to say and then create opportunities to say it.

How you deliver those messages is also crucial. Know your subject matter well. You should be completely comfortable with your talking points. Practicing in a mock interview can also help you prepare to respond to a reporter’s questions.

The most important technique in an interview is called "bridging.” Bridging simply means answering or acknowledging the interviewer's question and then delivering your own positive message. For example:

• “Yes,” you answer, “and in addition to that...”
• “No,” you answer, “let me explain why...”
• “That’s the way it used to be. Here’s the way it is now.”
• “That’s not how I would put it. What I would say is...” 

“Flagging” is closely related to bridging. Flagging emphasizes a point you want to stand out. For example:

• “The point I really want to make is...”
• “The most important thing to remember about this is…” 

Types of Interviews

Not all media interviews are created equal. They may be conducted live or taped for later broadcast. Whether you are participating in a television, radio, or print interview will also determine how to you respond to a reporter’s questions.

Television journalists are looking for a short quote, called a “sound bite,” when conducting an interview. An ideal sound bite is about 10 seconds. It takes practice to keep your responses short and specific, but also thoughtful. Live television interviews will give you an opportunity to respond to multiple questions, but the same principle applies. 

Television journalists generally come to you to conduct interviews. It’s important to choose an environment that accurately reflects the story and one in which you feel comfortable. For example, if the story is about a youth service project, the interview would naturally take place at the event. Choose a quiet place without distractions where you can concentrate on the discussion. Determine whether you are more at ease sitting or standing. If the sun is bothering you, change the location to a shady area. Most journalists are very accommodating and open to your suggestions.

Television stations will often send a cameraman instead of a journalist to conduct interviews at events. In these cases, general questions are typically asked, which gives you the opportunity to discuss your key messages. Television journalists may also “piggy-back” an interview, which means you may find yourself giving one interview to multiple cameras at the same time. Don’t be intimidated. Speak directly to the reporter asking the questions and ignore the cameras. 

Radio interviews also focus on short sound bites called “actualities.” A radio interview can be recorded over the phone, in a studio, or on location. You may also have the opportunity to participate in a live radio interview. Live radio interviews are generally more conversational. You will have your own microphone and can refer to notes.

Interviews with newspaper reporters are more lengthy and in-depth. A print journalist will often use multiple quotes of varying lengths in the final story. Everything you say and do in a print interview is on the record. Newspaper journalists will also often describe the location of the interview, your demeanor, and the people around you. Photographers will usually accompany print journalists to take both candid and posed photographs.

The Interview

Relax and be positive when giving an interview. Think of questions as an opportunity to inform, educate, and enlighten. You are not offering an answer; you are giving a response. A response is your answer plus your message.

What a journalist wants from an interview is a quote that will add insight, emotion, or thought to a story. Here are some suggestions:

• Think before you speak. Feel free to restate a reporter’s question to make sure you understand it. Take a moment, collect your thoughts, and speak conversationally.
• Anticipate a non-member audience and avoid Church jargon. For example, call a ward “a local congregation” or a bishop “a local ecclesiastical leader.”
• When using facts and statistics, keep them simple and round the figures. Don't say the Church has members in 138 countries when you can say, “The Church has members in almost every country in the world.” Don't say “47 percent” when you can say “nearly half.”
• Be descriptive. Don't just say, “We had five thousand convert baptisms in this country last year.” Instead say, “Five thousand people have joined the Church in this country since January. That’s a thousand more than a year ago.”
• Try to create visual images. In describing the United States’ trillion-dollar debt, President Ronald Reagan compared it as being equal to a stack of $1,000 bills that was 67 miles high. Such mental images create impact. A Church-related example might be, “On average, a convert enters a Latter-day Saint baptismal font somewhere in the world every two-and-a-half minutes.”
• Be truthful and straightforward. If you don't know the answer to a question, say so, and offer to find someone who does.
• You are always on the record, even when the tape recorder and camera have been shut off and the reporter has closed his notebook. If you don't want to read it in the paper or hear it on the air, don’t say it.

How You Look 

It may seem impossible, but ignore the television cameras, still cameras, and tape recorders as much as possible during an interview. Instead, concentrate on maintaining eye contact with the journalist. The more natural and personable you are, the better you will appear on camera. 

Reporters will usually take a small portion of what they record for their final product, so not everything you say and do will be used. However, everything you say and do will be captured, so you must conduct yourself as if you are being recorded at all times.

On television, how you look is just as important as what you say. In a studio setting, conservative and professional attire is preferred. Strong, solid colors look good on camera. Avoid narrow stripes, tight pinpoint patterns, and flashy jewelry, which can all cause problems for the cameras. If you are being interviewed “on location,” job-specific clothes are expected. For example, if you are with Church volunteers providing disaster relief, you might be wearing jeans, a T-shirt, and a Mormon Helping Hands vest.

Correcting Misinformation during the Interview

It may be necessary to correct information about the Church during the course of an interview. Don’t get defensive, but do politely correct inaccuracies. Misinformation often comes in the following forms.

• The Loaded Preface

EXAMPLE: “Although Mormons are not Christians, they do believe in living upright lives.” Watch for serious inaccuracies in interview introductions, and don’t let them go unnoticed, because they then carry with them implied accuracy. A good response to this example might be: “Your statement is rather ironic because it is precisely our strong belief in Jesus Christ and our desire to follow His example that leads us to try and live upstanding lives of service to others.”

• The A or B Dilemma

EXAMPLE: “Are you interested in gaining new converts because they increase your political influence or because they give you greater financial return?” Don’t accept limited alternatives. Respond with something like: “Neither. Our primary task is to preach the Christian gospel and improve the lives of people everywhere.”

• The Hypothetical Question

EXAMPLE: “Suppose your Church were to begin ordaining women to the priesthood. What effect do you think that would have on the Church?” Watch out for “what if” questions. Bridge from these questions to something you want to talk about: “Since that hasn’t happened, I can’t really speculate. What I can tell you is…”

• The Absent-Party Question

EXAMPLE: “Why do some people accuse you of not being Christian?” Don’t get pulled into saying negative things about others. You don’t need to explain other people’s misperceptions or feelings. You might say, “You would have to ask them that question. I think that anyone who really knows a Latter-day Saint would readily acknowledge their belief in Jesus Christ...”

• Inconsistency

EXAMPLE: “Ten years ago you said that blacks would not hold the priesthood. Now they do. Why did you change your mind?” Set the record straight, but don’t apologize. You might say something like, “A key element of Church doctrine is belief in modern revelation. Such revelation would be unnecessary if there were never changes in Church practice or in life’s situations and conditions.”