Steve Dawson is a Fox Sports commentator. He has interviewed many people throughout his time and has had a lot of experience. I was certainly glad to hear his story. He told us about the 5 principles of a good interview. These were..
- Ask open-ended questions because it provides the challenge for the interviewer.
- Set the answers free and don’t limit
- Don’t interrupt
- Don’t ask double barrelled questions. (Be a single Shooter
- Listen to the answer
- Don’t be a fanboy or a girl
This last one made the most impact to me because he told us a story about his interview with Manny Pacquiao. He could have been a fanboy about it and made a big deal and ask for photos and everything but he was very responsible about it. Then as he was leaving the hotel room Manny said “Steve, come back we need a photo” and from acting professional I learnt that you can build very positive relationships from it.
One thought on “Steve Dawson – Writers Fortnight”
I think the most important takeaway from this session is that you need to be aware of the questions that you’re asking. If you reword a question well, you will be able to get more out of your interviewee than if you worded it badly.
Paolo Fuentes