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During the interview proper, the reporter should be alert to new unexpected angles of the
topic that usually pp up. If this happens, he should be ready to forego prepared questions if he
can obtain a better story on another topic that presents itself unexpectedly.
General questions should be avoided. Questions should be definite and specific. Also for
better results, the interview should be kept o a conversational basis.
The story should be written right away after the interview. But before this, the reporter
should first determine what kind of interview he has to write: Informative? Opinion? Feature? Or
a combination of these?
Dos and Donts in Conducting an Interview
A. Dos
1. Know your subjecct thoroughly and jot down exactly what questions you want clarified.
2. Know your interviewee-his hobbies, strenghts, opinion on the topic, achivements, even
weaknesses.
3. Make an appoinmment and be there ahead of time. Be prepared to listen, and take brief
notes when available.
4. Introduce yourself again even if you have an appointment. Always be courteous in
requesting clarifications, and be friendly and greatful for concessions like the repetition
of an explanation you are getting down verbatim, and for being allowed to tape his
explanation, etc.
5. Offer show him your write-up before its publication.
6. Respect "off the record" comments.7
B. Donts
1. Never demand. Request and say Thank you.
2. Don't meet unfavorably to whatever he is saying. Even when asked, be neutral if you
cannot honestly agree with him. Remember, you will write down his answers, not your
ideas.
3. Don't hesitate to request repetition or clarification of anything not fully understood.
4. Don't take down everything, abbrebriate long words and use only key words for main
ideas.
5. Don't overstay.
6. Don't postpone writing your notes. Do so as soon as you get out of the interview room.
Guidelines to Observe During the Interview
1. Be interested in what your subject has to say. Show it. Give him importance. Donlt
interupt while he is taking.
2. Don't talk too much yourself.
3. Positive questions are preferred to negative or ranmbling questions.
4. Take notes unobstrusively.
5. Get your subjectls name correctly spelled, his middle initial, his address, age,
occupations, etc. - anything that is relevant to your story.
6. Show your quotes even the whole repport in proofs on a technical subject-but do not
promise to.
Guidelines to Observe in Writing the Interview
1. Correct all grammatical errors and awkward sentences made by the interviewee unless
they are necessary to reveal his personality. In doing this don't change the interviewee's
meaning.
2. Make the quote clear and compact.
3. Avoid any reference to yourself unless needed.
4. To avoid monotony, don't use "he said" many times. Use synonyms of "said" like
remarked, stated, concluded, stressed, etc.
5. Use noun substitute like "the speaker," "the principal," etc., to avoid overworking the
intrviewee's name.7