Comments on: The Art of the E-Mail Interview http://www.contentious.com/2005/12/05/the-art-of-the-e-mail-interview/ Amy Gahran's news and musings on how we communicate in the online age. Tue, 02 Dec 2008 16:40:31 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.5 By: Dennis http://www.contentious.com/2005/12/05/the-art-of-the-e-mail-interview/#comment-47165 Dennis Wed, 14 Dec 2005 01:10:29 +0000 #comment-47165 I agree to all your points and thank you for addressing this (also read the AJR story). I'm slowly working through my fear of e-mail interviews after countless tales of dread from my city editors. Now, however, I'm at a trade covering a national, no make that an international, industry from an office in So. Cal. While our budget permits quite a bit of travel, most interviews are phoners. I'm hoping to supplement that with e-mail and AIM. Cheers. I agree to all your points and thank you for addressing this (also read the AJR story). I’m slowly working through my fear of e-mail interviews after countless tales of dread from my city editors. Now, however, I’m at a trade covering a national, no make that an international, industry from an office in So. Cal. While our budget permits quite a bit of travel, most interviews are phoners. I’m hoping to supplement that with e-mail and AIM. Cheers.

]]> By: Susan http://www.contentious.com/2005/12/05/the-art-of-the-e-mail-interview/#comment-47081 Susan Tue, 13 Dec 2005 08:26:39 +0000 #comment-47081 e-mail interview is better than a real one. Writing an e-mail, a certain person can think of words and the best way of answering. Thanks for that. e-mail interview is better than a real one. Writing an e-mail, a certain person can think of words and the best way of answering.
Thanks for that.

]]> By: Dawn http://www.contentious.com/2005/12/05/the-art-of-the-e-mail-interview/#comment-46483 Dawn Thu, 08 Dec 2005 18:47:44 +0000 #comment-46483 I LOVE email interviews. I do hard news stories, so my approach is usually to first call the person I'm interviewing to let them know what story I'm doing and that I have some questions I'd like to email to them. I usually get a favorable response (though oddly enough I was just asked to fax my questions instead to one subject to see if they were "appropriate questions." I don't know what the difference between fax and email was to them, but whatever makes your subject happy, I say do it! I favor email interviews for one of the reasons you mentioned above...accountability. I've interviewed subjects over the phone who have come back and accused me of misquoting them when I clearly remember being extremely careful to write down everything they said exactly the way they said it. Email helps protect me from those accusations because I have written proof of what they said. I LOVE email interviews. I do hard news stories, so my approach is usually to first call the person I’m interviewing to let them know what story I’m doing and that I have some questions I’d like to email to them. I usually get a favorable response (though oddly enough I was just asked to fax my questions instead to one subject to see if they were “appropriate questions.” I don’t know what the difference between fax and email was to them, but whatever makes your subject happy, I say do it!

I favor email interviews for one of the reasons you mentioned above…accountability. I’ve interviewed subjects over the phone who have come back and accused me of misquoting them when I clearly remember being extremely careful to write down everything they said exactly the way they said it. Email helps protect me from those accusations because I have written proof of what they said.

]]> By: Laura Bergells http://www.contentious.com/2005/12/05/the-art-of-the-e-mail-interview/#comment-46471 Laura Bergells Thu, 08 Dec 2005 17:42:39 +0000 #comment-46471 And I love that I have always been quoted absolutely, 100% correctly in email interviews! And I love that I have always been quoted absolutely, 100% correctly in email interviews!

]]> By: Amy Gahran http://www.contentious.com/2005/12/05/the-art-of-the-e-mail-interview/#comment-46338 Amy Gahran Tue, 06 Dec 2005 14:39:14 +0000 #comment-46338 Ack, sorry, I coded the link incorrectly. I fixed it, the link works now. - Amy Gahran Ack, sorry, I coded the link incorrectly. I fixed it, the link works now.

- Amy Gahran

]]> By: Cheryl Morgan http://www.contentious.com/2005/12/05/the-art-of-the-e-mail-interview/#comment-46270 Cheryl Morgan Tue, 06 Dec 2005 02:32:11 +0000 #comment-46270 I've done email interviews before, and I have to admit that they save masses of time in not having to transcribe a story. But I've also found that you have to work quite hard to create a believable conversation that way. If the interiewee is happy to answer follow-up questions that helps, but I've found it easier to try to anticipate follow-ups in the initial list of questions than pester the subject too often. It is generally easy to tell an interview that has been done by email with only one round of questions - it tends to read in a very stilted way, more like answers to an exam paper than a conversation. I’ve done email interviews before, and I have to admit that they save masses of time in not having to transcribe a story. But I’ve also found that you have to work quite hard to create a believable conversation that way. If the interiewee is happy to answer follow-up questions that helps, but I’ve found it easier to try to anticipate follow-ups in the initial list of questions than pester the subject too often. It is generally easy to tell an interview that has been done by email with only one round of questions - it tends to read in a very stilted way, more like answers to an exam paper than a conversation.

]]> By: Donnell King http://www.contentious.com/2005/12/05/the-art-of-the-e-mail-interview/#comment-46268 Donnell King Tue, 06 Dec 2005 01:45:57 +0000 #comment-46268 Amy: Good article, with practical insights! I may have misread something, but I believe the link you intended to point to Ms. Hart's article (Kim Hart, �Inbox Journalism.�) actually points to the permalink for your own article. Am I seeing that correctly? Amy:

Good article, with practical insights! I may have misread something, but I believe the link you intended to point to Ms. Hart’s article (Kim Hart, â��Inbox Journalism.â��) actually points to the permalink for your own article. Am I seeing that correctly?

]]> By: Miguel Guhlin http://www.contentious.com/2005/12/05/the-art-of-the-e-mail-interview/#comment-46267 Miguel Guhlin Tue, 06 Dec 2005 01:25:47 +0000 #comment-46267 Howdy! Thanks for sharing the advice! I noticed that your link to "Inbox Journalism" just brings us back to your blog entry. Did you mean to do that or were you hoping to link to the actual article by Kim Hart? Thanks! An avid reader, Miguel Guhlin http://www.mguhlin.net/blog Howdy! Thanks for sharing the advice! I noticed that your link to “Inbox Journalism” just brings us back to your blog entry. Did you mean to do that or were you hoping to link to the actual article by Kim Hart?

Thanks!

An avid reader,

Miguel Guhlin
http://www.mguhlin.net/blog

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