The disjointed nature of the NHS Test and Trace programme is just another example of muddled thinking and muddy messaging at the top. Consider the complaint about Test and Trace on the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee website – “the Government does not provide any information on whether there are different rules for healthcare workers”. Heroic […]
Why the video conference interview is a poor substitute for the real thing
Among the many consequences of the Covid-19 restrictions is a decline in the power and effectiveness of news interviews, at exactly the time when tough questioning is most needed. As this crisis develops, that need will intensify. The physical limits set by the government on the movement of people, while absolutely essential, are having a […]
Off the hook – or left dangling? How did Emily Maitlis handle the interview with Prince Andrew?
Acres of newsprint have already been devoted to Emily Maitlis’ interview with the Duke of York, in particular debating whether he should have agreed to it in the first place and, having agreed, whether he succeeded in countering a long list of awkward questions. The near-unanimous verdict is that he failed to offer convincing explanations […]
How do you prepare for the unexpected question?
Questions are vital to an interview or a conversation. Without them the exchange would have no momentum, no life. They are the stimulus, the yeast which lifts the conversation and gives it body. So anyone dealing with the media must be prepared for questions, lots of them. The problem is that they come in every […]
Bringing The News To Children
Today’s older generation with clear memories of the last century will recognise the important part “the news” played in their lives. It was the golden age of news coverage, with every medium working overtime – literally – to carry the latest news, and hopefully be first with it. The present generation don’t have it that […]
Olivia’s BAFTA bluff
For those last night who managed to sit through the lengthy luvvy-fest that is BAFTA, one of the highlights was undoubtedly Olivia Colman’s brilliant acceptance speech – nervous, funny and, of course, totally off-the-cuff. Don’t you believe it. Her delightful whacky performance would have been carefully prepared. She was, after all, The Favourite, so the […]
News Reporting – Emotion versus Fact
Of its very nature, news reporting casts an inquisitive eye over every type of event, and all in some way touch on the human condition – tragedy, grief, triumph, the unique, the humdrum. Into every one of those categories, human nature intrudes, seeking out as far as possible the truth or at least the clearest […]
What Persimmon media advisors did wrong
So farewell Mr Fairburn, boss (till the end of the month) of the house-builder Persimmon. He is the victim of his inability to handle fall-out from his £75m bonus, but is he himself wholly to blame? Where were his media advisors when he was questioned, quite legitimately, about his bonus in a BBC interview? Well, […]
It’s all about the people
Brexit is non-stop. Daily we are engulfed by an avalanche of proposals, counter-proposals, Chequers plans and no-deal scenarios. We are told of customs unions, free-trade agreements, deadlines looming. Acres of newsprint and hours of broadcasting are devoted to trying to explain what is happening. Business correspondents beaver away, finding fancier and fancier ways of getting […]
The four categories of participants on a media training course
A row of unfamiliar faces along the other side of the conference table. Three, four, maybe five. The start of another media training session. Soon those faces will begin to swim into focus and their owners’ characters will start to emerge as the course gets under way. Yet already, even before the course has started, […]
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