Like law and sausages: the ugliness of the interview

It's said that in order to appreciate certain things, laws and sausages among them, it's best not to know how they were made. I think articles may also belong in that category -- not because anything unethical or unsavory happens, but because the interview process can sometimes be an awkward, cringeworthy experience.

My recent talk with Congressman Lee Hamilton is a good example. Originally, I was assigned to write a short piece for Bloom Magazine. When I arrived for my first interview, I handed Hamilton a copy of book I wrote on great speeches of the last half century, thinking he would be amused to recall the events of his Congressional tenure. As he thumbed through the pages, he offered personal observations about each figure.

"Gerald Ford, he lived a few blocks from us. His wife Betty and my wife were good friends. Charleton Heston, he was on the Hill all the time. Kofi Annan I know quite well. Oh, Anwar El-Sadat, he was so much like an American politician. Always saying, 'Lee, you can call me Anwar.'"

I returned to Bloom restless and a bit distraught, realizing I couldn't use anything I'd gathered during his initial reverie. I could hardly write myself into the story -- we rarely use first person, and certainly not in the section for which this piece was destined -- and it was my book that prompted the memories. My editor agreed that it would make a great story, though, so we decided to schedule a second interview designed to elicit a similar response.

I recorded the interview with my iPhone. If you listened to it, what you'd hear is me blurting out events of the '60s, '70s, and '80s in the hopes of prompting interesting anecdotes.

"So... what about Watergate?"

"What do you remember about the Equal Rights Amendment?"

"Let's move on. Gulf War?"

I was trying to recreate the flipping-through-the-book moment, and it worked. I got a great story full of historical name-dropping and behind-the-scenes vignettes. It's our cover feature for April/May. But boy, did I ever sound like an idiot.

I try to remember in these instances that I don't work for radio or television. I work in print, and when it comes to print, it's not about the interview. What I say doesn't matter. It's how the subject responds. I'm not trying to sound smart, I'm trying to sound interested and attentive and I'm trying to ask the questions that get the answers I need for the article.

Still, it may be time for me to get the interview training I missed by falling bassackwards into this profession. I welcome any tips.