Blog
After a media training session you will never listen or watch the news in the same way as before. You will spot experienced interviewees deflect awkward lines of questioning and some will talk with great passion about causes close to their heart. But it’s not always this way.
Those who really should know better can make a terrible hash of things even royalty, senior politicians and broadcasters.
During our weekly blogs we note what has gone well and not-so-well for those making the news. We offer regular advice slots and hot tips which we hope you will find useful.
How to Deal with a Personal Question in a Media Interview
It might surprise you to learn that spokespeople often have different personal views than the ones they are trying to get across on radio, TV or print media. Politicians in particular sometimes need to tread a narrow path between their party line and what their...
Why You Should Pay More Attention to the Last Question in an Interview
Like many things in life, a media interview is never over until it is over. There have been many experts, CEOs and politicians who have been sent a curveball by that all-important final question. If you find a question coming at you from left field, it can quickly put...
How to Say ‘I Don’t Know’ in a Media Interview
Despite all the best preparation, there will be times when you get asked a question in a media interview that you just don’t know the answer to. This can be a frightening experience if you are not prepared for it. There is the temptation to try and fashion an answer...
What is a Bridging Phrase and When Should You Use It?
Media interviews, whether they are for TV or radio, can be challenging. Difficult questions are often asked. If you’ve watched recent interviews on the news with the Government during the Covid pandemic, you can understand how these can make ministers apprehensive....
The Bright side of Zoom
I was very fed up at the prospect of moving my media training sessions online 6 months ago. I love the interaction with clients and face-to-face sessions have a dynamic, realism and sense of fun it’s hard to create through a computer screen. However, while I’m no fan...
Why Making Complex Items Simple is Key for a Good Interview: And How to Do It
Media interviews for radio or TV tend to last just a few minutes. If you are trying to get across a complex issue or idea, this can present major challenges. It is easy to panic if you are not prepared. That is why thinking about what you need to say, and how that...
Why Crisis Media Training is so Important in These Uncertain Times
In some parts of the UK, we are slowly beginning to return to something approaching normal after the Coronavirus lockdown. Recent and sudden reversals in places like Manchester, however, reveal that we are not yet through the worst of the pandemic. Things can change...
Why Online Interviews May Be the Future
Lockdown has changed the way we do lots of things, including how media interviews are carried out. Online Media Interviews Over the last few months, we have become used to seeing most media interviews being carried out online. We’ve had an insight into some famous...
Why Your Coronavirus Crisis Media Plan Needs Updating Regularly
The news and our lives are dominated by one thing at the moment: The national lockdown because of the Covid-19 pandemic. These are challenges times not only for individuals but businesses and organisations of all sizes who have found themselves put on hold. While...
Oops! Top 10 Mistakes on Zoom
Remember this – from a time before we were all using Zoom – small children crash into their father’s office – interrupting the professor’s interview on South Korea! With interviews now being broadcast from home all the time, I wanted to share some advice we give our...
Media Tips for Being Interviewed in Your Own Home
Lockdown has caused some strange ripples in the way we do just about everything in our daily lives, and this includes how organisations are being asked to interact with the media. If you are a spokesperson, or business leader in your organisation, now more than ever...
How to Not Make an Awkward Media Situation Worse
Maybe you have worded something awkwardly, and people have interpreted it differently than you originally intended. Maybe something you have said or done has been taken out of context. These news stories can happen suddenly, and spread quickly, thanks in part to...