1. DA010 - Professional Diploma in Public Relations - COMM6005EP
Public Relations Presentation and
Communication Skills (2011/10)
Lecture 6
Effective Interview Skills
Developed and Presented by
Roy Ying, Msc., B.Comm.
Note: Pictures used in this power point file
is for academic Purpose only

2. Table of Content
• Preparing for interviews as interviewees
and as PR professionals
• 7 Steps in successful interviews
• How to handle difficult questions
• Role play workshop: mock up media
interviews

3. “I have no power to prosecute.
I have only the power to
embarrass, to humiliate, to
expose.” Geraldo Rivera

4. Legitimate Pre-Interview
Concerns:
• “Will the questions be fair?”
• “Does the reporter have a hidden
agenda?”
• “Can I control the interview process?”
• “What are the rules of engagement?”
• “Will I be misquoted?”
• “Will the reporter understand the issues
here?”

5. Journalistic “Balance” - A
Modern Definition
Critic’s Message Your Message

6. Why Do Interviews?
• Because a reporter has asked you
questions?
• Because you have Communications
Objectives of your own

7. Remember, This Process is
About CONTROL
• Control of the media to the extent you can.
• Control of yourself in all situations.

8. Remember, you start in a
great position. You have
something the media
wants……..
THE INFORMATION

9. You will be ready to conduct
effective interviews when you...
• Can identify the news
questions you would
ask if you were the
reporter
• Can frame answers to
those questions
• And can set your own
agenda for news
interviews

10. Interviews: The Reporter’s
Perspective
• Heart and soul of the news
• Give depth, background, perspective, and
personality to news
• Quotes are interview excerpts to explain,
inform, & illuminate……They put the
human face on journalism
• Reporters expect to get enough
background to understand any story they
cover.

11. Preparing for a media interview
is a systematic effort
• Brevity, simplicity, and clarity are key to all
interviews.
• Prepare…..Don’t “shoot from the lip.” (Your
organization is too important.)
• “Don’t take it personally……the reporters don’t.”

12. Most Common Interview
Mistakes:
• Treating the interview like you would
normal conversation
• Overloading the system (literally, “talking
too much,” giving too much detail, and/or
using too much jargon)
• Merely answering questions and not taking
charge of your answers

13. Effective Media Interviews
Seven Steps to Success

14. Step One: Define / Refine the
Issue
• Establish rapport
• Be polite and communicate a wish to help
• Don’t automatically agree to or refuse an
interview
• Stress you need information first and negotiate
to get it

15. Step One: Define/
Refine the Issue
• Attempt to Determine – What’s your story or
the Reporter’s angle?
Agenda by Asking – Can I ask how much
you know about this
Questions:
issue?
– Reporter’s name &
– Can I send (fax) some
affiliation?
background?
– What is it about?
– When is your deadline
– What particular aspect and I’ll get back to you?
are you focusing on?

16. Background Information Versus
“Press Releases”
• Definition of a Press Release: “Dropping
a rose petal into the Grand Canyon and
waiting to hear an echo.”
• Background information: Usually a tightly
written fact sheet (outline or “bullet” format)
which gives key background, facts,
organizational policy, current status, etc.
Not a press release!

17. Step One: Define/Refine the
Issue
• Determine your
purpose/feasibility
• Research the
answers
– Consult subject matter
experts
– Formulate your own
questions
– Determine if new
developments or
issues exist

18. Step One: Define/Refine the
Issue
• Once the issue is
clearly defined in your
mind, ask yourself the
most important
question of
all…….”Am I really
the one who should
be doing this
interview?”

19. Step Two: Develop the
Response
• Response: A prepared statement triggered
by (hopefully) an anticipated question.
• Consists of two elements:
– Information (answers the question)
– Communications Objective (the organization’s
position or perspective on the issue)

20. Step Two: Develop the
Response
• Communications
Objectives (Messages)
are the KEY to
success. Without
them, you are at the
reporter’s mercy.
The media claim they don’t like ‘em, but they always use ‘em!

21. What is a “Message?”
• A concise point you want the audience to
know and remember
• Tells why the issue/program/etc is
important in the audience’s real world.
• Is the key point(s) you are going to get
across no matter what!

22. What Does Being “Message
Driven” Mean?
• Knowing what your messages are.
• Being consistent in delivering them.
• Assertively bringing them into the interview.
• Displaying the empathy that shows you
mean the message you deliver.

23. Messages are most effective
when framed in newsworthy
terms. & significant
• New
• A spin-off of a trend
or event
• Adds a new wrinkle to
a current news story
• Gives a local tie to a
national or regional
issue

24. Messages - “The Art of the
Quotable Quote.”
• Brief
• Stands on its own
• Uses common
language & avoids
jargon
• Colorful or metaphor-
ical (if appropriate)
• Passionate or
energetic
“Ethos, Logos & Pathos”
Aristotle

25. Message Length
• Messages for broad-
cast media average
between 5 and 20
seconds (normal
“sound bite” = 8 sec.)
Messages for print
rarely exceed 1 to 3
lines.

26. Create a Theme for Your
Interview
• What is a theme? A word or word
picture to frame your message(s) in a
memorable way.
• Reinforcing a theme throughout the
interview keeps you and your messages
focused. Ideally, a theme should
dominate the interview and tie the
messages together.
• Examples: “Building the foundation”,
“Back to the basics”, “A few good men”

27. Step Two: Develop the
Response
• Goal:
– To begin addressing
the issue from where
you feel the most
comfortable, not
necessarily where the
reporter’s questions
are trying to lead you.
Messages and themes keep you
on target!

28. Step Three: Brainstorm
Potential Questions
• Think of everything
you think you could
? be asked, to include
the worst possible
questions.
• Consider the rule of
“5x5”

29. Step Four: Answer Questions
Briefly in Writing
• Promotes recall
• Ensures accuracy
– Especially useful with
statistics, complex
issues
• Creates a guide for
others (for continuity
and consistency)

30. Step Five: (If Appropriate)
Rehearse Out Loud
• Murder Board: Staff
role-plays the press &
critiques performance
• Make sure you have
staff ask the tough
questions/give honest
feedback
• Practice quotes/bites,
but be careful not to
sound “rehearsed”

31. Step Six: Establish the Ground
Rules
• Call back on time
• Reiterate the subject of the interview
• Establish the areas not open for
discussion
• Establish interview length, location,
day/time (choose interview site carefully)

32. Enforcing Your “Bill of Rights”
• In interviews of a spontaneous nature,
you have the right……
– To know who is interviewing you and who
he/she represents
– To have total agreement by both parties of
ground rules, no matter how hastily
arranged
– To be treated courteously, even with tough
questions
USMC Media Training Guide

33. Enforcing Your “Bill of Rights”
• Spontaneous interviews (continued).
You have the right…..
– Not to be physically threatened or impaired
by lights too close or micro- phones
shoved in your face
– To break off the interview after a
“reasonable” time following the answers to
important, main questions
USMC Media Training Guide

34. Enforcing Your “Bill of Rights”
• In pre-arranged office or studio
interviews, you have the right……
– To all the rights previously noted
– To know general content and thrust of the
interview so you can research & prepare
– To know generally how long the interview
will last or your limit
– To have a representative with you
USMC Media Training Guide

35. Enforcing Your “Bill of Rights”
• Prearranged or studio interviews
(continued). You have the right…….
– To make your own audio or videotape of
the interview
– To be told when you are being recorded
– To be allowed to answer without constant
interruption or harassment, assuming your
answers are brief and to the point
– To have an accurate introduction
USMC Media Training Guide

36. Some Interview “Don’ts”
• Don’t ask for
questions in advance
• Don’t argue
• Don’t ask to see a
story before it runs
• Don’t allow a reporter
to violate ground rules
• Don’t pass the buck

37. Additional “Tips of the Trade”
• Use concrete, short
sentences & active
verbs
• Be an active listener
• Be extremely careful
if asked to agree to
a paraphrase
• TELL THE TRUTH!
• Empathy and
humility enhance
believability

38. Step Six: Establish The Ground
Rules……A Final Thought
• Once you get to this
point, you have
negotiated a good
faith contract with the
reporter. KEEP
YOUR SIDE OF THE
CONTRACT.
They’ve told their boss
the interview is a “go”

39. Step Seven: Conduct the
Interview
• With Professionalism
• With Confidence
• With Control
• With Adequate
Preparation

40. Techniques of Control
• Packaging/Bundling • Hooking
– Quantify your info and – Begs the question &
tie it together giving the baits the reporter to
reporter verbal clues to ask the question you
follow want
– “We’ve got three new – “I think your
initiatives to solve the audience may be
problem and they interested in our two
are….” major concerns and
initiatives….”

41. Techniques of Control
• Bridging • Flagging
– Verbal maneuver to – Body/hand/facial
reform question in gestures, tone of
terms most favorable voice, leaning for-
to you ward to make a point,
– Lead in Phrases: etc.
• “That’s one – Why? Draws
perspective…” attention to what you
• “What concerns me are identifying as a
even more..” key response.

42. Understanding the “On The
Record/Off The Record” Maze

43. On The Record
• Everything you say
can be reported
verbatim and you can
be identified by name
and position as the
source of the
information (NOTE:
This is the preferred
way to do business)

44. Off The Record
• The reporter agrees
to take information
from a protected
source without doing
the story or
identifying the
informant in any way.
(NOTE: Don’t trust
the reporter unless
you also know the
editor well)

45. On Background
• The reporter can
use the information
but not directly
name the source.
• Good technique for
educating a reporter

46. On Categories of Release……...
• As a matter of principle and basic policy,
you should be prepared to live with
everything you say to a reporter or don’t
say it at all!

47. Answering difficult questions
• No matter what question is asked, your
main goal is to answer the question (in
your own way) and communicate at least
one of your planned key messages.
• With preparation, any question from the
media is a chance to tell your side of the
story, or get your message across.
All you need is a skill in bridging the interviewer’s
questions to your prepared core message(s).

48. Answering difficult questions
Example 1:
• A current professional real estate investor was
asked, “Some people call you a vulture; how do
you respond to that?”
• First, he diffused the question with a smile. The
he paused and said, “Well, they must not
understand what it is that we do. We’ll buy this
dilapidated house when no one else will, and
then we’ll make it the best house on the block.
Which would you rather live next to?”

49. What has he done right?
•• How was
How was •• What was
What was
his body
his body his core
his core
language?
language? message?
message?
•• Did he •• Who did
Who did
Did he he build
answer the
answer the he build
question? rapport
rapport
question? with?
with?

50. Answering difficult questions
Example 2:
• Donald Tsang was asked, ”there is a serious
shortage of office space in HK. What are you
going to do about it?” (FYI, we all know that he
doesn’t have a plan)
• “It’s a great question!” He then looked at his
policy address notes for about 10 seconds,
smiled, and responded, “The government is
committed to improving HK’s competitiveness. If
you have a view, please tell us! I will be happy
to include your ideas in formulating land policies.
In particular, you should respond to the West
Wing consultation.”

51. What has he done right?
•• Did he
Did he •• Did he
Did he
appear to
appear to have a core
have a core
be un-
be un- message?
message?
prepared?
prepared?
•• What was
What was •• Any other
Any other
the next
the next objective
objective
best thing
best thing he
he
to do?
to do? achieved?
achieved?

52. Answering difficult questions
Example 3:
• Wong Yan lung was asked the question on
“HK’s judicial system’s integrity if NPC
decides to interpret Basic Law article 24”

53. What has he done wrong?
•• How long
How long •• Who was
Who was
did he wait
did he wait his target
his target
until this
until this audience?
audience?
statement?
statement?
•• What was
What was •• How do
How do
his core
his core you rate
you rate
message?
message? his body
his body
language?
language?

54. Mock Up Exercise
Pick one topic:
• 王征回應亞洲電視錯報江澤民死訊
• 樂亦玲回應陳志雲回朝