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Talk about....

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by Flip Wilson, Oct 5, 2018.

  1. Flip Wilson

    Flip Wilson Well-Known Member

    Yes, we've all cringed when (usually TV) reporters begin a question with "talk about..." Red Sox pitcher Chris Sale gave the perfect answer when he was instructed to talk about his success against the Yankees this year.

     
  2. Fredrick

    Fredrick Well-Known Member

    Beautiful.
     
  3. Alma

    Alma Well-Known Member

    Meh. Every reporter alive has asked one in one way or another, the guy who asked it has been in that market for a long time and generally asks tough questions.

    Call me nuts, but I tend to have grace for veteran reporters over some bajillion athlete.

    I’ve written this before but one of the reasons “talk about” even worked its way into the vernacular is because athletes tend to be judgy and stingy with real questions.

    “Why didn’t that play work in the fourth quarter?” is a question that often elicits the asshole answer “we didn’t execute” whereas “talk about” is an invitation for the coach or athlete to say whatever it is he or she wants to say about it. It’s softer.

    Do I like it? No. I’d avoid it like the plague. But it’s amusing to me how much shit “talk about” gets while news reporters can ask these 94-second declarative statements that end with a slight question mark and we seem to think those are cool.
     
    SnarkShark likes this.
  4. JPsT

    JPsT Member

    Wholeheartedly agree. Trashing on "talk about" is a favorite pastime of reporters who ask questions that suck but do it in complete sentences.

    We all have our crutches. Try as I might, I keep lobbing "How important...?" questions and getting "Very important." answers.
     
    MNgremlin likes this.
  5. Doc Holliday

    Doc Holliday Well-Known Member

    I can't stand the "Talk About It" question and have refrained from ever using it. And, I've asked some pretty damn good questions that elicited similar responses. Yet I'm still amazed at some of the most revealing and insightful answers the "Talk About It" questions will get.

    I've been doing this a long, long time and it's hard to admit I'm wrong sometimes. But this may be one of those times. Whatever gets the best answer is all I'm looking for.
     
    studthug12 likes this.
  6. da man

    da man Well-Known Member

    That's all I've been saying for what seems like forever and ever.
     
    Doc Holliday likes this.
  7. Moderator1

    Moderator1 Moderator Staff Member

    Yeah, I've opined on this before. I didn't use it all the time or even very often but there were times I felt it might work and it often (though not always) worked. And to the jackasses who ridiculed it? My message is the same: You do you. I'll do me and don't you worry about it.

    It works sometimes. To repeat Doc, sort of: Whatever works.
     
    Doc Holliday likes this.
  8. justgladtobehere

    justgladtobehere Well-Known Member

  9. Doc Holliday

    Doc Holliday Well-Known Member

    I honestly can't stand the "Talk About" request. It so fucking sophomoric. But, damn, sometimes it provides the best fucking quotes I've ever gotten. Damned if you do. Damned if you don't.
     
  10. Cosmo

    Cosmo Well-Known Member

    Why not ask, "What do you think has been the key to your success against the Yankees this year?" Basically the same thing, phrased as a question.
     
  11. Moderator1

    Moderator1 Moderator Staff Member

    Well, I've always thought of interviews as conversations or tried to make them that way. Again, sometimes I got the feeling that "talk about" would work and I went there - usually NOT in gr0up settings, which are generally worthless anyway.
     
  12. Double Down

    Double Down Well-Known Member

    No one thinks this. It is the straw-y-ist of strawmen. 94 questions only produce eye rolls. The questions that actually get admiration from fellow beat guys are direct and neutral. "What happened during that sequence in the 4th quarter?" (And then STFU and let the silence hang in the air.)
     
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