Why don't people like to call reporters back?

exactly. if they say call them back at whatever time, that's when i call them..i've done that numerous times and, if they're not there or wife/whoever answers, i tell them that's the time the subject i'm interviewing told me to call; it throws the "monkey" on their back.
and a lot of it has to do with being bare knuckles' persistent.

 

I'll often e-mail people I don't know very well, just to get their attention and explain what I want and set up a time to talk. Frankly, I'd rather not catch them off guard when they don't have time to talk, and have them blow me off.
If I don't hear back in a reasonable amount of time, I'll call. And call again.
But some people just don't like to call reporters back, because they don't trust us or they're "too busy," or it's just not a priority. If you catch them at their phone, they might talk your ear off, but they don't dial your number if they don't see anything in it for them.

 

When you leave a mesage, keep it short, but try to say something that would give them a reason to call you back, short of telling them you just kidnapped their dog.

 

when we do Q and A type of stories and especially those that we might put in the "tank" and use later, i will usually e-mail the subject the questions and give him or her a precise deadline that is both comfortable for them and yet meets our situation. i do that on stories that i am writing that maybe won't be published until a month later...usually, when you give a precise time for them to get back with you, it works.

 

Well, if you are referring to non-coaches and types that are not normally used to talking to reporters, I have to tell you from the "other side" of the fence, that getting a phone call from a reporter is a scary thing. Even if you are the random player that scored unusually high at the previous game. A message or voice mail that says, "This is Joe Blow from the Local Podunk Journal" (or any media outlet, for that matter) is a scary thing for a regular person. Yes, we always wonder if the motive is a good one or not.

I'm sure most don't want to hear this, and that most of you are dealing with it from a sports perspective, and not a news perspective, but I just thought you might want to hear what it feels like to get those messages. Yes, it takes a while to return those types of phone calls.

I was contacted once by a reporter that was, when I worked at the newspaper, my closest friend there. Our kids went to the same high school. When I got a voice mail from her, it took me three days to get the courage to call her back. Even though I knew her well, I feared what she was going to ask me, even though there was nothing going on to justify such fears.

Just my two cents.

 

i'll give you an incident that happened to me last fall that illustrates what you're talking about with "non-sports" folks..i had heard about two brothers who played football for a local team saving a lady and her young daughter from a drowning accident. was wanting to do a human interest type of story as a followup to the regular news story that newsside did. ..wasn't able to get her at first, but left a message and my number....waited several days, no less, so called again and she answered this time. but the minute i identified myself, she said, 'no way i'm doing anymore interviews. they burned me." she was referring to a local TV station that absolutely screwed up the interview, had all the facts wrong, etc...finally she calmed down and apologizied for taking it out on me. i told her, 'hey, no problem, understand your situation.' well, she wound up granting us a great interview with all of the details, other interesting sidelights to it, etc..but initially, she didn't return that call to me because it was another media person she was hesitant to talk with about what happened.

 

Reason No. 1,934 why TV people suck.

I've had a pretty good success rate over the years in getting people to call back. I think it helps if you tell them why (in general terms) you need them. Unless it's for some sort of controversial story, it shouldn't be a big deal to tell the person, or wife, or whover you're leaving a message with, that you just need to talk to them for a story about this week's game or some feature story. It'd probably put their mind at ease.

 

I always explain the reason for the call to whoever answers the phone. If I don't get a call back in a reasonable amount of time (depending on the urgency) I call back and tell them "I've been away from the phone and was concerned I might have missed a return call."
Repeat as necessary.

 

My perspective was not from a TV outlet, though. I'm telling you, it IS a big deal to get a message from a newspaper reporter. You all have been one since when, high school?

For the rest of us, YES. It's a big deal. And it raises a certain level of fear. And we wait to return the phone call.

Most do not explain the reason for the call. Or if they do (as was done to me more than once) it is so vague that I have no idea where they plan to go with their story. And maybe that explains it. I, as a source for you, need to know your direction before I return your call.

 

They might not like you.

 

I don't like to call anybody back. Because of cell phones, we all spend too much time on the phone.

 

I'm wondering this, too. I've actually had great success with batch e-mail interview requests during the past few years. Especially at the high school level, I've found it much more likely to get responses.