Slashdot Mirror
Interviewing the Interviewer (vulture.com)
Terry Gross, NPR's The Fresh Air host, on the art of the Q&A: "People are always projecting things. They're hearing things that weren't said or projecting meaning that was not intended and, perhaps, not even implied. I've gotten both insults and compliments for interviews I've never done. What can you do? There's no way of controlling what people think. I do have a bullshit detector and it's something I'll use, but I do think I try and be empathetic to everyone I interview," said Terry Gross.
"People are always projecting things. They're hearing things that weren't said or projecting meaning that was not intended
That pretty much sums up NPR interviews and "news" stories.
This was a fascinating article with amazing insights. I didn't even bother to read it.
I suppose the editors think this is a great article to show how "objective" NPR is but Faux News is still teh propaganda!
Yeah, MY bullshit detector is going off.
It's a defense of insipid interviews where favored politicians get asked questions like "Why are people jealous of your success?" and unfavored politicians get hammered with questions like "When did you stop beating your spouse?"
It's not that interviewers don't have bullshit detectors Terry Gross. It's because they all use them selectively. You'd think someone with an adequate bullshit detector would realize that... or perhaps not spew bullshit in defense?
Naaah.
News for nerds my ass
So this is an interview where one interviewer interviews and another interviewer who usually interviews some famous people?
Where's the nerd connection? Is it that the nerds among us would start genering jokes about the meta-levels of interviewing?
Can we reach level three here by having a slashdot Q&A with the author? Level four, anybody?
Interesting to know if you have a better example of how to interview someone.
Involving electricity no less.
NPR to be informed.
I don't get why folks have a problem with NPR. It's the only news source that I can actually hear both sides without the yelling and other bullshit - they do have many conservatives and Republicans on and let them say what they have to say. As a matter of fact, it's the only source where I can actually hear and understand the conservative side because the NPR folks actually ask decent questions.
And NPR is the news source that keeps me a centrist and not drinking the Leftist Kool-Aid because I can hear the rational versions of the conservative side - unlike Fox News.
I also can hear the rational side of the liberal side.
Nerd connection is we're terrible at anything social, and interviewing brings that right out.
At least to those educated enough to listen to public radio.
Say what you will about Terry Gross, but she is an astute observer and has a breadth of knowledge about human psychology from the sheer number of years that she has spent interviewing and studying people. I find her personally overbearing and a little annoying but I will give her the credit she is due. However, I do like it when her bullshit-o-meter hits critical mass and she can no longer hold back. People need a good solid dose of reality at times.
I can't take anything Terry gross says seriously, not because she's transparently progressive - which she is. It's that SNL Alex Baldwin sketch. Oh, and the dusty muffin one with Kate McKinnon ...
Those have replaced the lens with which I see her ..
Terry Gross is nearly 67 (next month) and her shows have, imho, displayed the characteristics of an aging host. Her subjects have become less relevant to anyone outside the art & lit communities
and she's lost, imho, a certain clarity in her questions. Still, you can learn a lot about how to more effectively interact with someone who doesn't share your worldview (ie almost everyone) from her. But anyone who claims NPR (which I listen to) is centrist or unbiased is delusional - they are strongly biased. Both her, her show, and the NPR "network". The thing they do have which few other shows seem to care about is a high level of journalistic integrity. But "unbiased"?? LOL! It would be interesting if she interviewed her show's producer about how they decide on which people to interview and which subjects to talk about. I'd be surprised if they admitted that her show is left-right "blind", or that the weight of donations to NPR are from people on the left but that doesn't influence those choices.
I love the downmodding of everyone that you disagree with. So here's some goatse to cheer you up. Suck my nuts! Mod me down! By modding me down, you have wasted another modpoint, DOUCHES!
one or the other corpse turned over 486/66 with 8 they want you to Fatal mistakes, Do, andd with any guys are usuaaly I've never seen Continues to lose
Anyone who says they have the truth is either a religious fanatic or is trying to sell you something.
Your comment is a perfect example of a NPR listener!
We are discerning, we don't take things at face value, we question and are skeptical......
Of course there's horseshit! We've all heard it. I mean there have been times when I have cringed at what I've heard.
But all in all, NPR is one of the best things in the USA for information - obviously it's not perfect. But that's what the tissue in our skull is for.
You're preaching to choir.
-Parent Poster
I've written a fair amount and notice the same things the interviewer/ee talks about. People regularly complain about things they claim I wrote which I didn't. Or complain I didn't cover something I've written about several times. People often project their own emotions on columns I wrote and then complain or compliment based on their own slant. It's very weird getting hate or fan mail for things I haven't done or written.
MsMash, I think BeauHD must have shot a load so big in ur mouth that It malfunctioned your brain..
So, this should be posted on linkedin.
Please stop ruining this place, this is not yahoo news, just becuase u get a brain fart doesnt mean its relevant
for fuck's sake please stop.
I feel like going back to the old SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE sketch with Dan Akaroid and Jane Curtain.
Weekend News Update
"Jane, you ignorant Slut"
The Shame here is that, no one here probably remembers it, I mean it was in the 70's. Maybe..
But i'll say this, the shit She is shoveling here is pathetic, dumbs down your audience, forces the inteligence factor down on your avg reader, and it introiduces the element of white shit trash. Just like TRUMP that ShitHole
empathy, riiiight.
I’m really not fond of her interviewing style. I find that, like many seasoned journalists, she rarely lets her guests develop their thoughts for more than a few seconds, interrupting them and then speaking as much (if not more) than them. She has the irritating tendency to feed words to her guests (at least, those who are less comfortable speaking than her), starting a line of thought for them (as in “It must have felt so blah blah such and such. How did you feel when blah blah blah?”) and getting them to just repeat and complete the line, and so basically making them say something that they likely would not have quite said on their own. She may be confusing that technique with “getting them to open up” but, in reality, the result feels about as valuable as a forced police confession.
It’s a pity, given that her shows are pre-recorded and edited, giving her the opportunity to let guests take as much time as they’d like to precisely formulate their thoughts.
Since non-scientists (and some scientists) don't understand the scientific meaning of words they use, (time, energy, matter, consiousness, evolution, etc.) they use these words as icons which they suppose validate their (religious, cultural, political) opinions.
When she's doing trivial entertainment type interviews, she's fine. But she (and everyone else on public radio) have a definite left-wing bias. They're just more urbane about presenting it.