The journey towards establishing this interview has technology to thank in a big way—I'm looking at you Skype. I interviewed the director of my previous college's Women's Resource Center, Sharon Sobotta, who also happens to be a freelance journalist and a founder of the non-profit Intercultural Encounters. What I didn't know about Sharon which was to my surprise and benefit, that she is currently the lead-field reporter for a radio station in her area. I contacted Sharon through Facebook with a semi-formal request for her help, and with a swift response we were a-go.
Sharon is very serious when it comes to awareness and education of social justice issues which overlaps into what she writes. "I'm branded as sort of the social justice/racism/xenophobia/women's issue person." She filled me into a recent piece she did covering a case out of Oakland—Oscar Grant, it's a case of police brutality. It was interesting to hear her talk about this other side of her life; I know her only as the awesome Women's Resource Center director. The blending of her passions gave me a lot of inspiration for myself and my own future in journalism.
Being a field-reporter, Sharon doesn't have much time to prepare for her interviews; they're on the spot, in the middle of the action, or lack of action. On choosing an interviewee, she shared a pretty funny (at least to me) remedy to the lack of prep: "I have learned to have my eye on the person I'm going to interview... sometimes I need to cut an interview [...] short in order to get someone who will be crucial to the story who appears at a particular moment." What distinguishes the importance of one individual to the next is all about context she shared. "The context could be anything from the content of a sign they're carrying to their affiliation with a particular group." Sharon made light of the Oscar Grant piece once more to further emphasize the use of these methods in the field.
Digging deeper into interviewing—what are we even supposed to do? Sharon was very enthusiastic about getting into the niceties of interviewing. The main point was to leave your coat, and your attitude, at the door. "I make sure not to make sounds or give any indication that what the interviewee is saying may be upsetting or offensive to me." This reminded me of what they tell people in customer service jobs, 'smile and pretend.' Sharon's approach was less fake, more: "If I don't get defensive, my interviewee doesn't get defensive."
Curious as to how to handle situations out of your control: "I'm kind, but diplomatically explain that our listeners would be interested in their perspective." Making the interviewee feel integral to the piece seemed like such an excellent way to make them want to be cooperative. I noted how close Sharon is to her work: "I get fairly personal, but always offer the interviewee an out in case she/he doesn't feel like answering."
Not quite sure how I would end the interview, I opted to search for any advice she might have for me in pursuing a career in journalism. Her words were "Do what you need to do to brand yourself. Take as many assignments as you're able to handle and choose projects that you are passionate about. The more you like what you do, the better you'll do at it." This was useful to hear, and reinforced in my mind the little impacts of things like this interviewing project on my career in the long-run.
-RobbS
This was a great post! Loved the narrative. Though I would've liked to read a little more about how the interview went in terms of the communication concepts and skills we're discussed in class, you did a great job telling a story and sharing a number of great bits and pieces of wisdom from your interviewee.
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