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Merged: John Sawatsky at Poynter

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by Michelle Hiskey, Apr 20, 2007.

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  1. Dale Cooper

    Dale Cooper Member

    Re: John Sawatsky -- Notes from Poynter Sports Summit

    Michelle--Thanks for posting this. A good substitute for those of us who could not make it.

    For the naysayers--no matter the setting, a good question gives you a better chance to get a good answer. Thinking about what makes a good question can help all of us.
     
    Dale Cooper, Apr 20, 2007
    #13
  2. Songbird

    Songbird Well-Known Member

    Re: Sawatsky -- part 4

    I'm like Clever right now: the above post is gobblety gook SAT'ism and making my head spin. Is that what they're teaching these days?

    Let's make it easier: Stay away from yes/no questions unless you want a yes/no answer.

    Otherwise, ask a question in such a way that the subject must answer the question using nouns and verbs and objects and emotion.
     
    Songbird, Apr 20, 2007
    #14
  3. write then drink

    write then drink Guest

    Re: Sawatsky -- part 3

    can somebody cobble these all together maybe?
     
    write then drink, Apr 21, 2007
    #15
  4. Birdscribe

    Birdscribe Active Member

    Re: Sawatsky -- part 4

    I'll keep this very simple, just like I do for my J-100 class...

    Start each question with the phrase "Tell me about..."

    Forces subject to answer in detail.

    End of lecture. :D
     
    Birdscribe, Apr 21, 2007
    #16
  5. Piotr Rasputin

    Piotr Rasputin New Member

    Re: Sawatsky -- part 4

    He never mentions the ultimate sin:

    NEVER address a coach as "Coach."
     
    Piotr Rasputin, Apr 21, 2007
    #17
  6. Elliotte Friedman

    Elliotte Friedman Moderator Staff Member

    Re: Merged" John Sawatsky at Poynter

    Merged to make this easier.
     
    Elliotte Friedman, Apr 21, 2007
    #18
  7. write then drink

    write then drink Guest

    yeah, i just read all of this and have to say it's a bunch of long-winded, over-wrought crap that could have been whittled down into 50 words and has all been explained in far clearer ways to every JO 101 student

    whoever put all this together was trying to show off more than trying to help

    stuff like:

    Think of a non-digital camera. The lens determines what is in the picture.
    The shutter makes the camera operate.

    Lens is your topic -- what you are looking at.
    Shutter is the query -- what does the work.

    that's when I walk out

    that's just me
     
    write then drink, Apr 21, 2007
    #19
  8. Elliotte Friedman

    Elliotte Friedman Moderator Staff Member

    I took the Sawatsky interview course over four days shortly following my arrival at CBC. Like most workshops, there were things I really liked and things that weren't for me.

    (I will say this, there were some people in my group that were totally hostile to his ideas, which I thought was rude and uncalled for. I had to leave early on the last day, and there was a confrontation between him and one of the anchors. Apparently, he has not done a seminar at CBC since.)

    The most important thing Sawatsky does is get you to think about how you are asking questions. There's nothing wrong with analyzing your interview style. He's big on questions that begin with "what," "why," or "how." He also believes in brevity (shorter is better); avoiding "choice" questions ("Were you trying to do this or that" -- because it gives the subject an out) and avoiding queries that bring a "yes or no" answer.

    That was one of three areas where I disagreed with him. After all, there are times when you want a yes or no answer: "Nick Saban, have you spoken to the University of Alabama?"

    Another was style and being conversational. Sawatsky believes everyone should use the same technique. As Michelle mentioned, he provides examples of bad interviews by Mike Wallace, Barbara Walters and Larry King. Now I can't stand the latter two, but there's no denying their s successes. The two of them -- and especially Wallace -- have had terrific careers and many great moments. Sometimes, they will make statements in their interviews. Sometimes they will drop into conversational mode. "That happened to you? Well I can remember a similar thing with me..." and not really ask a question but the guest will answer anyway. Sawatsky is against that, which I think is wrong. Sometimes conversational works.

    Finally, he believes that subjects will stop to answer questions out of common politeness. (I can't remember the phrase he used, but it's something like that.) I tried to explain to him that when an athlete is coming out of court after a preliminary hearing for sexual assault, they are going to be stopping out of courtesy to listen to me. I might get only one question -- not the three or four he believes you need to properly set up the interview. He couldn't really answer that to my satisfaction.

    Anyway, he was good to listen to. And I have modified my technique based on some of the things he taught. But there were other theories I passed on.
     
    Elliotte Friedman, Apr 21, 2007
    #20
  9. Cosmo

    Cosmo Well-Known Member

    Local TV people could learn something from this for sure. Nothing worse than getting five minutes with an athlete after a game and having the TV yokels dominate with crap like "so, great game out there today. Comment?"

    I'm not saying print people are perfect by any stretch. It's tough sometimes to come up with real clear, concise questions under deadline pressure. Where something like this could help me is in feature interviewing. I could stand to get better there.
     
    Cosmo, Apr 21, 2007
    #21
  10. Dave Kindred

    Dave Kindred Member

    Michelle did good work there.

    I sat in on the first Sawatsky session (standing room only, by the way, in an auditorium that seated 75 people). I left better for having heard from a man who not only has studied the process but has used it to great advantage in years as an investigative reporter.
     
    Dave Kindred, Apr 21, 2007
    #22
  11. friend of the friendless

    friend of the friendless Active Member

    Sirs, Madames,

    I sat in on Sawatsky at Poynter two days in a row last year. The Significant Other did the same CBC course Mr Friedman attended. I have friends who are pretty accomplished who can't stand his approach. I think it's really worthwhile, ditto the Significant Other. Yes, I know, some deadline/locker room stuff isn't conducive to his approach but in terms of writing a feature, magazine work or books I think he has a lot of it dead on. Not that everyone should necessarily move in Sawatsky lockstep after the sessions -- I think you have to go by gut somewhat. Mr F, did they do the beaver on the bridge interview at your session? It sounds hysterical.

    YHS, etc
     
    friend of the friendless, Apr 21, 2007
    #23
  12. Double J

    Double J Active Member

    That's not disagreeing with him. He readily acknowledges those occasions when the question should elicit a yes/no response.

     
    Double J, Apr 22, 2007
    #24
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