Please Do Now:
- View the following interview between Tavis Smiley and Congressman John Lewis: http://www.pbs.org/kcet/tavissmiley/video/636.html
- If the video doesn’t work, you can listen to the audio and read the transcript here: http://www.pbs.org/kcet/tavissmiley/archive/200808/20080828_lewis.html
- Describe the relationship between Tavis and Rep. Lewis.
- How does Tavis put Rep. Lewis at ease?
- What kinds of questions does Tavis ask Rep. Lewis? Fact vs. Opinion? General vs. Detailed?
- How do his questions evolve over time?
- Do you notice a pattern to the questions?
- How do you think Tavis prepared for this interview?
- What can we learn about good interview techniques from this interview?
Today, students will:
- Discuss good interview techniques.
- Workshop Lena’s interview planners: http://lenacomptonjournalism1.wordpress.com/2008/09/07/interview-planners/
- Revise interview planners in groups.
Tonight’s homework is:
- Conduct two of your interviews.
- Transcribe AT LEAST 5 imporant quotes you might use to write the story from each interview. Post the transctiptions to your blog.
- Respond to the discussion thread “beats” inside the Journalism 1 group.
24 responses so far ↓
patrickquinlan // September 9, 2008 at 5:24 pm |
Tavis puts the congressman at ease by letting him recount his memories the way that Lewis wants to remember them. He acts friendly and comfortable to get Lewis to be more open. Tavis asks Lewis questions about what the congressman did; he wants to get lewis’s opinion. Lewis is asked detailed questions about how he felt and what he did, and the two appeared to be at least friendly, if not close. At first the questions were about the Election, but later moved on to the March on Washington. I think that tavis prepared for the interview by finding out about Lewis’s history. A good interviewer will
kevins2011 // September 9, 2008 at 5:25 pm |
Tavis and Lewis have a strong relationship. Tavis never attacks Lewis or disagrees with what Lewis says, Tavis simply asks Lewis his opinions on general topics which Lewis can give detailed answers about. Tavis also relates his questions to Lewis’ last answer so it feels more like a steady conversation which would help keep Lewis at easy and help Lewis give better answers. At the beginning of Tavis’ questions he lets Lewis know of a question he will ask later. For example, “Before I ask you to give me your reflections on the speech”. I believe Tavis had many different kinds of questions so if Lewis touched any certain topic, Tavis might have a question to ask. From this interview, I learned that it is very important to relate your next question to the last answer.
patrickquinlan // September 9, 2008 at 5:26 pm |
try to put the interviewee at ease and make them comfortable, as if they were in a conversation. A taped interview would be different from a printed one because a taped interview could convey body expressions and movements, tone, and attitude more easily.
7y13r // September 9, 2008 at 5:29 pm |
Tavis and Rep. Lewis have a friendly, easy-going relationship. Tavis starts out his questioning with light questions to set Lewis at ease and make him more responsive. Tavis asks opinion questions, choosing open-endedness to get better responses. As time goes on his questions become a bit more focused and more personal. He’d ask an easier question, then something that required a more detailed answer. He likely structured his questions in advance, and tried to anticipate the answers. Tavis’ techniques are excellent for getting good responses without making your subject uncomfortable.
laurenpeterson1 // September 9, 2008 at 5:30 pm |
Tavis has apparently had Rep. Lewis on the show before. They seem to be friends, and have known each other for a long time. Tavis askes Rep. Lewis about his views on the speech, and how and why he chose to act the way he did. Tavis is talking to Rep. Lewis like an old friend, instead of an recorded interview. Tavis’s questions evolve by getting more detailed, and personal. Rep. Lewis answers the MANY questions simply to send his point across to the audience. Tavis probably prepared himself for the interview by prewriting the questions he was going to ask. I can learn that you must be polite but you HAVe to move on so you get all of your questions answered.
hkramer14 // September 9, 2008 at 5:33 pm |
1. Tavis and Rep. Lewis seem to be very comfortable with eachother. They appear to be good friends and Lewis has been on the show before.
2. Tavis talks to Lewis like an old friend, chatting, not like at an interview. He, very nicely, asks Lewis to recall his past to answer his questions.
3. Lewis is basically asked for his opinion and his background information.
4. Tavis’s questions evolve over time because they gradually get deeper and more personal.
5. Although Tavis’s questions are personal, he keeps politely firing questions at Lewis to get his point across to the viewers.
6. I think Tavis maybe did a time-line check on King and a history check on Lewis.
7. You can learn how to make it seem like a talk, not like an interview.
alexandragenta // September 9, 2008 at 5:34 pm |
The relationship between travis and Rep. Lewis is a friendly one, Rep. Lewis is very much at ease with tavis.
Tavis puts Rep. Lewis at ease by maybe saying things like “i am so glad to have you here today”
Most of tavis’s questions are detailed and opininated, such as his opinion on the fact that the democratic nominee is african american.
His questions evolved from simply asking his opinion on Obama running as the democratic nominee to Martin Luther King Jrs speech against vietnam
I think travis probably did a lot of research on Rep.Lewis and his backround with martin luther king.
The diffrence between an interview thats filmed for t.v and an interview in article is that in an article you only print what you want and if there is something the interviewe said that you dont want to print you dont have to but on t.v you cannot control what the interviewe says
xkatastrophe // September 9, 2008 at 5:34 pm |
Describe the relationship between Tavis and Rep. Lewis.
-The relationship between Tavis and Rep. Lewis was very friendly and casual. They had talked before or Tavis had interviewed him before, and the fact that Rep. Lewis would say ‘Thank you, brother. Thank you’ shows that they are on good terms.
How does Tavis put Rep. Lewis at ease?
-He puts him at ease by using casual everyday language while discussing serious topics.
What kinds of questions does Tavis ask Rep.
Lewis? Fact vs. Opinion? General vs. Detailed?
-Tavis asked him questions on how the experience he had affected his views on the democratic candidates and how that experience lead him too switch from Hillary Clinton to Barack Obama. The questions were a bit opinionative as well as the responses however it was very factual at the same time because Rep. Lewis answered through his experiences. The interview was detailed but not overly detailed to the point where it is boring.
How do his questions evolve over time?
-He starts off by asking about how his experience marching and speaking affected his views on the election, then goes back and forth between the past and how it affects the present.
Do you notice a pattern to the questions?
-Yes, same response as listed above.
How do you think Tavis prepared for this interview?
- By going over Dr King’s speeches, looking at Rep. Lewis’ speech, reviewing events in black history specifically the march.
What can we learn about good interview techniques from this interview?
-Keep the listener/reader/watcher intised, ask open ended questions that can have a variety of answers, consider the persons personal relation to the question, and make sure the questions ‘flow’ with one another.
LyssaG2011 // September 9, 2008 at 5:35 pm |
Tavis and Rep. Lewis have an amiable and familiar relatinship with each other. Tavis puts Rep. Lewis at ease by welcoming him. He says: “Good to have you back on again” and “I’m glad to have you here.” Tavis asks both detail and opinions because the topic is Rep. Lewis’ personal experience with past events. He gives opinions by giving his own interpretation and goes into detail about it as well. Interestingly enough, though the interview lasts a substantial amount of time, it seems that about only four questions were actually asked. Before asking, Tavis gives background information or introduces the topic instead of directly blurting it out. In one case, Tavis doesn’t even ask a question. He simply makes a comment (Tavis: He didn’t want to give his speech up.) and makes Rep. Lewis give more information. To prepare for the interview, Tavis probably had to do some research on Rep. Lewis in order to actually come up with the questions. This interview shows other interviewers that you can be friendly with the person being interviewed and that is important to give background information. When the interview is being filmed, the interviewer has to behave differently because he needs to be aware that he has an audience. That is why Tavis had to provide the background information before each question. He wants the viewer to be informed and have enough prior knowledge to understand what is going on.
nadineg2012 // September 9, 2008 at 5:35 pm |
Throughout the interview, Tavis and Rep. Lewis speak to each other as friends would, which is part of how Tavis tries to put Rep. Lewis at ease. He speaks very casually, and as though he wasn’t just reading off a list of questions that had been prepared ahead of time.
The questions are also very open-ended, allowing Rep. Lewis to elaborate on what he thinks is important, because after-all, he’s the expert on the subject.
Tavis doesn’t actually ask many questions, but the few he does ask become slightly more specific as the interview goes on.
Tavis probably prepared for the interview by learning about Rep. Lewis and the events that were to be discuessed, so that he could come up with good questions. He certainly prepared the questions ahead of time, but was also ready to ask different ones to follow up Lewis’s answers.
This interview shows how important it for an interviewer to not feel tied to the questions that he/she prepared ahead of time.
One of the differences between this televised interview and one that would not be viewed by anyone but the participants is that both Tavis and Rep. Lewis had to give a lot of background information so that the audience would understand what they were talking about.
lenac2011 // September 9, 2008 at 5:35 pm |
1. The relationship between Tavis and Rep. Lewis is very warm. They might not be friends but when they have been on a talkshow together they are friendly and very respectful. They like eachother and respect one another and that shows in the interview because it is very fluid and they are very comfortable talking with one another.
2. Tavis puts Rep. Lewis at ease by starting off the conversation talking about someone Rep. Lewis cares about deeply, the Clinton family. Rep. Lewis shares a close relationship with the Clintons and feels at ease talking about them and how friendly they are and how they care for one another.
3. The kinds of questions that Tavis asks Rep. Lewis are opinionated but kind of general and are basically asking his opinion on the situation in a general way.
4. Over time his questions get more into what Rep. Lewis is saying and not just different questions each time. He gets more involved in the conversation and instead of asking questions he offers his own opinion so instead of a formal interview it sounds more like a conversation.
5. I think Tavis prepared this conversation by doing background research on Rep. Lewis’ life and his relationships with key figures in the history of our country. He also made sure he knew details and not just general things so his detailed questions would make the answers even more detailed.
6. Some good interview techniques in this interview are that Tavis doesn’t just ask a question and get an answer each time. The process is more ask a question, get an answer and then discuss in more detail not just immediately jump to the next question. He also starts the interview off by making Rep. Lewis comfortable with the situation and then jumps into something a bit more meaningful and will hit home a little more.
7. The difference between a video interview and an article in the paper is that in an interview you can actually see the person’s reactions and how the interviewer and interviewee connect with one another. In an article you have to create that image of the relationship and it is a bit more difficult to connect with eachother.
Ray Lowenstein // September 9, 2008 at 5:36 pm |
Tavis puts Lewis to ease by letting him retell his memories the way that he remembers. Tavis asks questions that reffer to todays political standings and then later moves on to questions about lewis’s past. they are opinions usually. at first the questions are about todays political standpoint and then later he reffers to the time of the “I Have a Dream” speech. Tavis probebly prepared for this interview by researching Lewis and then writting down questions that tavis had for Lewis. We can learn good interviewer skills by reading articles and looking at the questions that the interviewers had.
jessekirk11 // September 9, 2008 at 5:36 pm |
1. Tavis and Rep. Lewis have a deep connection, and they seem to believe in the same kinds of ideals. They seem very fluid in their conversation, less like an interview and more like a profound conversation.
2. Tavis puts Rep. Lewis at ease by asking him personal questions about his political viewpoints, and his support for both Hillary Clinton and Barrack Obama. He also put him at ease because the two are the same race.
3. Tavis asks Rep. Lewis opinion-based questions, and most of them were quite detailed.
4. His questions evolve from light, conversational questions about politics to more in-depth and important questions.
5. His questions follow the same kind of pattern, in that he always hints towards the next question that he is going to ask.
6. Tavis prepared for this interview by gathering information about Rep. Lewis and his role in the I Have a Dream speech, as well as his political views.
7. From this interview, we can learn techniques for interviewing famous people about profound topics. We can also learn what kinds of questions to ask.
alicel2011 // September 9, 2008 at 6:07 pm |
Travis and Rep.Lewis seem to have a good relationship. Rep.Lewis is very comforable with the qusetions he is being asked. Tavis puts Rep. Lewis at ease by seeming just like a ongoing conversation. Tarvis asks rep. Lewis opinion questions forehen Travis asks an opinion
question when tells him what he thinks about what has happen in Denver with the presidential nomination. Also the questions are very detailed. For example, when he tells him to describe the night of August 27.He also has an opiniated questions when he is asked to give his reflection on the ” I have a dream ” speech. The qustions are first what is happening in the present and then what happened in the past. I don’ notice a pattern in the interview. I think Travis prepared for this by researching about him. A good interview sounds like a conversation and is easy going for both parties. An tv interview is better than written because in a tv the person could elaborate more. Rather than in the news paper is limited.
molliee // September 9, 2008 at 6:08 pm |
1.
Travis and Rep. Lewis have a freindly relatonship. Rep. Lewis calls Travis ” brother” so Rep. Lewis and Travis must be friends.
2.
Travis puts Rep. Lewis at ease by not offending Rep. Lewis when he said that people did not like his speech very much. Also how Travis was always telling rep. Lewis how he was glad to have him etc..
3.
Travis asks Rep. Lewis:
- asks about John Lewis speech: Fact vs. Opinion
- asks about Martin Luther King jr: General vs. Detail
4.
First Travisis qustions start off by asking Rep. Lewis about hiw oinion and his side of the story and then, Travis goes into talking alittle about Martn Luther King jr., and then about the 45th anniversary.
5.
Yes, Travis is really kind of layting out and tellind Rep. Lewis whats going on.
6.
I think that Travis really thought about how he was going to interview Rep. Lewis because he really did a good job in my opinion interviewing him. He kept Lewis in a good mood through out the whole interview and still got the quesions that he wanted.
7.
Alot, because Travis did everything a good interviewer should do.
madisonjsanders // September 9, 2008 at 6:09 pm |
Describe the relationship between Tavis and Rep. Lewis.
-Travis is the interviewer and Rep. Lewis is the man being interviewed.
How does Tavis put Rep. Lewis at ease?
-Travis puts Rep. Lewis at ease by recognizing his accomplishments, showing his appreciation toward them, and speaking to him as a “brother”.
What kinds of questions does Tavis ask Rep. Lewis? Fact vs. Opinion? General vs. Detailed?
-Travis’s questions were all asked in the form of reminding Rep. Lewis about an event, and then the question is asking for his opinion from that event.
How do his questions evolve over time?
-Over time, Travis’s questions evolved from actual questions into statements, in which Lewis agreed with, as well as sharing more details from his personal experience.
Do you notice a pattern to the questions?
-The questions started off more opinionative, and evolved to more factual questions through Rep. Lewis’s point of view.
How do you think Tavis prepared for this interview?
-I believe that Travis researched Rep. Lewis’s life prior to the interview so he could ask more detailed and reasonable questions. His questions needed to be very detailed and explanative to the audience because there is no room for inserting extra information, as there is with interviewing for print.
What can we learn about good interview techniques from this interview?
-From this interview, we can learn that more research behind a topic is better because you can ask more detailed questions and aim your story in a specific direction, as opposed to gathering multiple inspecific quotes.
Kelsey Sumalla // September 9, 2008 at 6:10 pm |
3. The relationship between Tavis and Rep. Lewis is a friendlty relationship. It almost seems like he is talking to an old friend.
4. Tavis puts Rep. Lewis at ease by not asking him question by question without a flow. He has a conversation with Lewis and asks him questions that have to do with Lewis’ answers.
5. Tavis asks general opinion questions that end up being answered with detail.
6. His questions start from being about the election and end up with Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech.
7. The questions refer to the answers Lewis give to the previous questions. It flows making it sound more like a conversation and less like an interview.
8. I think Tavis brainstormed questions he wanted or needed answered and thought of the many possible ways to go back to the topic if Lewis’s answer was not what he wanted.
9. If you use good interview techniques you will end with a good interview.
rachelcoller // September 9, 2008 at 6:11 pm |
3. Tavis and Rep. Lewis have a friendly relationship. They sound as though they were either old friends
4. Tavis sounded as though he was having a conversation with Rep. Lewis, not continuously questioning him.
5. Tavis asks Rep. Lewis opinion questions. Tavis asked Rep. Lewis questions that led to very detailed answers. Tavis would only need to say a few words, but somehow those words signaled a story that Rep. Lewis shared with the audience.
6. His interview begins with questions on the upcoming election ending with questions on Martin Luther King Jr’s speech.
7. All of the questions that Tavis asked Rep. Lewis refered back to the answer that Rep. Lewis had given before. This way, the interview sounded like a conversation
8. Tavis most likely researched Rep. Lewis’s history in order to ask questions that he would be able to get a good quote from.
9. A good interview technique is to make sure that the person you are interviewing feels comfortable with you.
carmenk2012 // September 9, 2008 at 6:19 pm |
1. Tavis is the interviewer and Rep. Lewis is the interviewee, but at the same time, they speak to each other in a friendly way. As mentioned in the interview, they have conducted interviews together before.
2. Tavis speaks to Rep. Lewis as though he was there with him. He is caring and phrases the questions he asks in a way that Rep. Lewis just has to elaborate on the facts, not report what happens. Tavis also is very compassionate in the way he speaks to Rep. Lewis.
3. Tavis mixes in fact and opinion in the questions he asks, but all of his questions are very detailed and ask about a specific thing.
4. The questions that Tavis asks flow very well and are about the topic that Rep. Lewis spoke about before, they’re not just read from a sheet of paper.
5. These questions are not random, they all ask about Rep. Lewis’ opinions and his story.
6. It is obvious that Tavis prepared for this interview and did his research. He asks questions that the ordinary person would not know about. He also takes things that Rep. Lewis has said before and asks him to clarify them and go into further depth about them.
7. This interview is not just asking questions, but it is more like a conversation. I think that this takes pressure off of the interviewee and gives them a chance to put their answer into their own words and to really say what they have to say.
hrynor // September 9, 2008 at 6:19 pm |
1. Travis and Rep. Lewis seam very friendly with each other.
2. Travis put Rep. Lewis at ease by complimenting him and admiring his accomplishments. Travis also puts Rep. Lewis at ease by saying he appreciates him, loves him, and enjoyed him being there.
3. Travis asks very opinionated and detailed questions.
4. His questions become more factual, where as they started out more opinionated.
5. Travis asks Rep. Lewis question immediately after he has finished answering the one before. However, Travis asks personal questions in a very polite and appropriate way.
6. I think Travis prepared by doing a lot of research and trying to determine ahead of time what Rep. Lewis would say.
7. We can learn how to appropriately ask more challenging questions, and make it came over well.
allisonnovack // September 10, 2008 at 9:20 pm |
1) Tracis and Rep. Lewis seem to get along well and seem open towards eachother
2) Travis compliments Rep. Lewis and tells him he appreciates him. The questions he asks him sound more like a conversation than a demanding interview.
3) The questions seem detailed and well thought out
4) Over time, the questions get more involved in a conversation rather than just random questions.
5) His question always give clues to what the next one may be. The questions come constantly.
6) Travis probably found out alot about Rep. Lewis and researched him. He found his political views and past experience.
7) We learn how to smoothly interview someone with making them feel compfortable
brittanywaserstein // September 10, 2008 at 9:21 pm |
3) Travis and Rep Lewis have a very friendly relationship and it seems that they have been friends forever.
I think that Travis prepared for his interview by finding the background or history of Lewis and by doing a lot of research.
4) Travis puts Rep. Lewis at ease by comforting him by giving him compliments and being very welcoming in having him. Also he puts him at ease by not questioning him a lot and not putting him on the spot.
5) Travis asks Rep. Lewis questions which are general and then he replies with a detailed answer.
6) His questions evolve over time by getting more personal then the next.
7) Yes, i think that the pattern is that Travis would ask a question on Travis’s answer from the last question.
9) We can learn how to ask questions in an appropriate manner, get good ideas for questions to ask and also learn different ways to interview someone.
jessicaw2010 // September 11, 2008 at 5:50 pm |
1) Travis and Lewis have a good relationship. Lewis is the interviewee and Travis is the interviewer. It seems like Travis and Lewis are two friends talking between themselves.
2) Travis kept complimenting Lewis and telling him how much he admires him.
3) Travis asks Lewis general questions so he can answer with his opinion.
4) His questions changed over time. Starting out being opinionated and personal and than more specific.
5) Travis keeps asking Lewis questions, one after another.
6) Travis probably researched about Lewis before the interview so he can learn about his backround and history.
7) From this interview we can learn a possible way of asking questions while still making the interview run smoothly and most importantly, having the interviewee feel comfortable.
jessicaw2010 // September 11, 2008 at 5:52 pm |