The Interview: background and questions

As we discussed in class today, an interview requires you to think of questions and then more questions and then more.

Here's brief recap of what you need to remember:
-- Don't ask questions that might get a yes/no answer ("Did your cat survive? isn't as good as "What happened after you took your cat to the vet?")
-- Don't stop after the first general answer to your question. Ask a follow-up question. ("Why'd you rear-end the guy? I was changing CDs.") Press for specific details ("What CD? Britney Spears.")
-- As for questions that will elicit thoughtful responses, or the subject's feelings or emotions or beliefs, etc. ("How did you grandmother feel about being separated from her parents in a strange, new country?")

And while we didn't cover this too much in class today, another very important part of the formal interview is preparation. Before you interview anyone on almost any topic, it's good to do your homework. Make sure you know the topic as well as you can, so you can keep the interview going as long as possible.

So here's your homework for Thursday:

1) Pick one of these three topics. I've chosen them because they're "talkers" -- things in the current news that everyone has heard about and is talking about.
-- The controversy over North Korea's claim to have conducted a nuclear test.
-- The scandal around U.S. Rep. Mark Foley and how it may or may not affect the November congressional elections.
-- The question of whether or not U.S. citizens feel more or less safe today than they did at 9/11.

2) Once you've picked your topic, research it in the library databases (Nexis, Proquest, Factiva). Make sure that you really know what has happened recently on these topics and you also know what kinds of opinions people (real folks, politicians, pundits, etc.) have on your topic.

3)Then, using the research you've done, imagine that I'm your editor, and I've assigned you a story on what people around our town are saying or thinking or feeling about your chosen topic. Come up with a list of at least six questions that you think might be good starting points for an interview with an Average Joe or Jane.

4) Bring your questions and background research to class with you on Thursday so we can discuss it all.