Tutorials Journalism

Interviewing for Journalism: Preparation, Consent, and Difficult Questions

Intermediate · ~30 min

Overview

A journalistic interview serves a different goal than a podcast conversation: accountability and information, not just an engaging listen: which changes how you prepare, sequence questions, and handle friction. This guide covers the craft specific to reporting interviews: research, consent, question order, and staying composed when an interview goes sideways. This is craft guidance, not legal advice, recording and consent rules genuinely vary by location, and you should verify the specific rules where you're reporting.

What You Need

Background research on your subject and topic completed beforehand
A recording device and a clear, upfront statement that you're recording
A short, prioritized list of questions, not a rigid script

Steps

Research thoroughly before pressing record

Know the subject's public record, likely talking points, and the specific facts you need confirmed or challenged. An unprepared interviewer is easy to steer toward vague, unusable answers.

Understand on/off the record in plain terms

"On the record" means everything said can be attributed and published. "off the record" means it can't be used at all, and "on background" typically means it can be used but not attributed by name. Agree explicitly on which applies before an interview starts, and confirm any shift mid-conversation out loud.

Sequence questions from easy to hard

Open with lower-stakes, rapport-building questions before moving into the harder or more adversarial ones. A subject who's already talking is more likely to stay and engage with a difficult question than one put on the defensive immediately.

Stay quiet after the answer

An uncomfortable pause after a subject finishes speaking often prompts them to keep talking and reveal more than a rehearsed initial answer, resist the urge to fill silence yourself.

Understand recording consent basics

Rules for recording a conversation vary meaningfully by country and sometimes by state or region. This is genuinely not one-size-fits-all, so verify the specific requirements where you're reporting rather than assuming. As a baseline practice regardless of the legal minimum, tell your subject plainly that you're recording before you start.

Handle a walk-out professionally

If a subject ends the interview abruptly, stay calm, thank them for the time they did give, and note exactly what was and wasn't answered: a subject's refusal to answer is itself often a reportable fact, but only if you've documented it accurately and fairly.

Pro Tips

Always run a backup recorder alongside your primary device. A failed recording of an interview you can't easily repeat is one of the most common and avoidable reporting failures.
Keep your most important question for roughly the middle of the interview, not the very end, subjects sometimes end interviews early, and you don't want your key question left unasked.
Take handwritten notes even while recording. A recording can fail, and notes capture your own observations (tone, hesitation, body language) that audio alone won't.

Knowledge Base

Journalistic Interviews Are Adversarial by Design, Not by Accident

Unlike a podcast conversation, where both parties generally want the same outcome (an engaging, flattering exchange), a journalistic interview's goal is accountability, which sometimes means the subject's incentive is to reveal as little as possible. Preparing for that dynamic, rather than expecting easy cooperation, is what separates journalistic interview technique from conversational interview technique.

Consent and Recording Law Genuinely Varies. Don't Assume

Recording consent requirements differ by jurisdiction in ways that matter. Some places require only one party's consent to record a conversation, others require all parties to agree. This guide deliberately doesn't state a specific rule as universal, because it isn't one. Verify the actual requirement for where you're reporting before you rely on an assumption from a different place.

Where This Fits

This guide covers one specific part of mobile journalism. The wider picture (shooting, filing, verifying, and the practical kit for reporting alone from the field) is in Mobile Journalism: A Complete Phone-Based Reporting Kit, which frames the discipline as a whole and links out to the detailed guides underneath it, including this one. If you are starting from scratch rather than solving a specific problem, read that first and come back here.

FAQ

Q: How is a journalistic interview different from a podcast interview?
A: A podcast interview is generally collaborative. Both parties want an engaging, flattering conversation. A journalistic interview can be adversarial by design when accountability is the goal, which changes the preparation (research, anticipated evasions) and the tone (persistent follow-ups rather than smooth rapport-building).

Q: Do I need consent to record every interview?
A: Recording consent rules vary significantly by country and even by state or region, and this varies enough that it's worth verifying the specific rules where you're reporting rather than assuming a rule from elsewhere applies. As a practical baseline, always tell an interview subject clearly that you're recording before you start.