3 easy questions that can derail a media interview
Seemingly simple questions like, ‘Is there anything else you’d like to add?’ can cause executives to ramble and miss opportunities to explain their messages. Here’s how to prep for them.
Media interviews are important, because they are hard to come by these days. Many reporters—even those at trade publications—often have to publish upward of six stories per day. Some reporters publish even more. That doesn’t leave much time for an in-depth topic examination.
PR professionals who consistently blog will have a special appreciation of the demands placed on members of the media. When we PR pros earn an interview, it can strengthen or weaken our credibility in providing relevant and useful sources.
Most PR people draft a briefing sheet to help prepare executives for interviews. These briefs should include:
When easy questions become hard
PR pros are especially sensitive to what might go awry in an interview. As a result, they tend to focus on the hard questions. Though it depends on the individual, executives are usually good at answering hard questions; they do it all the time with customers, leaders and employees. However, PR pros and executives often overlook the easy questions.
Here are three easy questions that can derail a media interview:
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