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Monday, August 28, 2006

The Death of the Live Interview?

Bloggers' distrust of the mainstream media threatens one of the most useful tools available: the live interview.  Some prominent bloggers like Jason Calacanis and Mark Cuban have taken to requiring interviews to be conducted by email -- a medium which makes it more difficult to build a rapport between the interviewer and his subject and also dispenses with the spontaneity of both questions and answers that makes live interviews everything they are.

In responding to questions to email, it is all too easy to polish and think through every answer.  While this may help to avoid potential minefields, it deprives everyone -- the participants and the audience alike -- of the value of a true give and take.

As someone who spent a lot of time in professional politics, I understand the pitfalls of interviews and the risks of being misquoted, quoted out of context, or simply misconstrued.  But the way to resolve those issues is to work on building a rapport with the interviewer.  If someone truly has an ax to grind, simply don't speak to them at all. 

Jason Calacanis says he will make exceptions when he "really trusts" a journalist.  And that's really the start of the solution -- build that trust, don't walk away from the live interview.

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whats she telling at that time

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What Is Pardon the Disruption?

  • As founder & CEO of CustomScoop, I have a special interest in the intersection of technology and PR/marketing. In addition, as a serial entrepreneur and angel investor, I cover those topics, as well as an occasional post on the gadgets I love.