Steve Dawson:
Have you ever wondered how it would feel like to meet your idol? What would you say to them? Rule number one of reporting is to find an angle which hasn’t been discovered before, and how to build a successful story on that story angle. Steve Dawson, former reporter at ESPN star sports, straights-times general news reporter, and currently a reporter at Fox News Sports offered 5 groundbreaking tips for a reporter. Some of us have been in a situation where we have got the chance to interview people with interesting stories to be told, however, a common question is what questions do we ask! Asking common knowledge questions will never provide the full, interesting answer you are looking for, always try to look to ask questions that make the speaker think and provide a story no one else may have heard. Here are the 5 tips he offered in order to be a successful reporter!
- Ask open-ended questions: When you ask questions that only have a yes/no answer, often, you won’t get the information you are hoping to receive. For example, instead of asking, “Do you like racing?” Ask something like, “What inspired you to begin racing?”
- Set the answer free: To me, this seemed to be the most useful, as I tend to ask specific, directed questions where there is only one answer which I want, however, this tip was very helpful in understanding the importance of letting the speaker offer a longer, more personal answer as we get more information. So, instead of setting regulations and parameters, let the answer free. Instead of “Are you concerned you haven’t made any profit?” Ask questions like “How do you feel that you haven’t made any profit?” Some of the most cliche answers are the best ones.
- Don’t interrupt: This is given, but extremely important in terms of making sure you don’t stop their chain of thoughts.
- Be a single shooter: Don’t ask too many questions in one question, instead ask one specific, directed question, which could answer both questions or offer a lot of information on one of them. If you ask two questions, it is likely the speaker will forget one of them.
- Listen to the answer: Even if you are recording the conversation, make sure you are listening as you never know when you can expand on certain ideas and perhaps, find a deeper, more interesting story.
Overall this workshop was helpful in assisting to learn about reporting and it elaborated my ideas on journalism. These tips can be applied to various subjects, and are especially useful.
