The Well-Spoken Woman (29 page)

Failing to hear out an emotional questioner appears insensitive or downright cold. In the heat of the moment, be careful not to judge too quickly. It may not be possible to understand the motivation or intention behind the question. The woman could have been a political activist from an opposing campaign trying to discredit the senator. Or she may well have been distraught and making an awkward plea for help. When confronted with a perturbed questioner, follow these steps.

THE NEW MEDIA WORLD

President Bill Clinton said that Secretary Albright's line about the Cuban fighter pilots who shot down two civilian aircraft with Americans aboard was one of the best in the administration's foreign policy. The remark was delivered at a press conference after the cowardice of the crime was revealed; evidence showed that the fighter planes fired outside of Cuba's territorial limits. The statement, which “would never in a thousand years have been cleared by the State Department if she had submitted it in advance,”
¹⁰
was a shocker in the staid world of diplomatic nuance. Albright defended it, given the Cubans' lack of regret about the loss of life and refusal to acknowledge a violation of the law.

Vowing to speak the language of everyday people and not the vernacular of a policy wonk endeared Albright to the public and the media. Wise to the ways of Washington, she courted the press and hired top-notch staff to build goodwill. But those relations didn't preclude becoming the subject of a tough interview just days into her job as secretary of state. Michael Dobbs of the
Washington Post
said he “stumbled across an extraordinary
story” when he found evidence that Albright's family was Jewish and that her grandparents and cousins had perished in the Holocaust. In a meeting in her office, Dobbs pressed Albright on her forthrightness about the family's Jewish ancestry.
¹¹

Albright and her team immediately took proactive steps to prevent Dobbs from attempting to portray her as unwilling to be frank and open. It was necessary to counter Dobbs's insinuations, which created a firestorm of press. If allowed to fester, rumor and innuendo could have impeded Albright's efforts to stay focused on foreign affairs. On
60 Minutes
, Albright said she was raised a Roman Catholic and knew nothing of this story.
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By responding quickly, Albright was able to exercise more control over the story and maintain her credibility.

DEALING WITH HOSTILE MEDIA

In a new media world, it is more necessary than ever to take extra precautions to protect yourself from inaccurate reporting and unfair tactics. Anyone with a camera can upload video online, and bloggers are bound by no limits. Dealing with social media technology and contentious reporters requires an astute understanding of what you are getting yourself into and additional techniques to exercise control over the process. The next section outlines the well-spoken woman's rules for dealing with aggressive reporters and hostile interview situations. The rules ensure you stay focused on delivering your message and don't allow yourself to be sidetracked. Exercise the following precautions, and you will enjoy more success with the press.

Rule 1: Expect Negativity

“Senator, when did you stop cheating on your spouse?”

Try to answer that question without sounding defensive. It presumes guilt on the part of the interviewee. There is much back-and-forth about the cultural bias of news organizations—the
New York Times
is called a liberal rag, while talk radio is termed a wasteland of conservative extremists.
Whatever a particular outlet's ideological bent, don't allow it to distract attention away from the overwhelmingly pervasive bias in all media: negativism. It starts with the questions “Why not? Whose fault? What went wrong?” If you are not ready for the onslaught of negativism, you can get swept away by a tidal wave and find yourself struggling to keep your head above water. The negativism is evident in how the news is covered. Reporters and editors are drawn to conflict like moths to a flame. The most typical story lines are he-said versus she-said and winners and losers. The formula of covering two sides of an issue fits nicely into a 90-second broadcast story and 700-word newspaper article. The press does less well when an issue is nuanced. And when isn't an issue nuanced? Analysis and thoughtful reportage are in short supply when newspapers, radio stations, television news programs, and cable talk shows have online platforms that require constant feeding. The churn of news creates a cycle of neverending deadlines. What was once a 24-hour news cycle is now a 1,440-minute news cycle.

Former eBay executive and gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman learned the hard way about the media's penchant for negativity. Whitman tried to boast that her years spent as a corporate executive ensured she was untainted by politics. The California press corps examined the record and discovered she was so untainted she hadn't voted in nearly thirty years. When Whitman responded by questioning the accuracy of the reporting, she only fanned the media flame. Her troubles were compounded at a press conference organized to apologize to voters, when she responded defensively. As a busy mom she was “focused on raising a family, on my husband's career, and we moved many, many, times.”
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The reaction from women's groups was, predictably, outrage, as Whitman's statement seemed to reinforce the stereotype that politics is the province of men.

Rule 2: Know Thy Reporter

Who are these people posing questions from the other end of a phone line or from behind a camera? Is it possible to be treated fairly? How can you gauge whether a reporter will be objective? Those questions have become more difficult to answer because the definition of who a reporter is has
changed. It can be helpful to think of reporters as falling into one of three categories or buckets based on experience, reputation, and skill.

Elite Press

The first bucket contains the elite press. This small group of accomplished journalists have in-depth knowledge of and personal interest in the subject matter. An interview with an elite journalist is distinguished by the fact that the reporter's reputation is on the line as much as yours. She has a real stake in the outcome and cares how her work is viewed, especially by her peers. On any given topic, only a handful of reporters fit the elite description. People like Nina Totenberg, who covers the Supreme Court for NPR; foreign-policy expert Christiane Amanpour, who hosts
This Week
on ABC; and Sue Shellenbarger, who writes about the work-life balancing act at the
Wall Street Journal
qualify. Writers for trade publications focusing on specific industries or topics also fit this category.

Newsroom Journalists

The second bucket contains reporters with journalism training and experience working in newsrooms. Most have degrees in communications, journalism, or broadcast media or have worked their way up the ranks. These individuals are familiar with journalistic principles and professional guidelines. However, they do not necessarily have expertise or interest in the subject matter. They work on assignment under tight deadlines. While not as personally invested in the final product as elite journalists, they can generally be counted on to be objective.

Everyone Else

The last bucket is anyone else—self-described citizen journalists, bloggers, or activists with agendas. These individuals have little or no training and, most notably, no accountability. They write, say, and do what they please. There is little or no fact-checking, and rumor and speculation are sometimes treated as fact. They often create a name for themselves by breaking
news before the mainstream press, as was the case with the writer at the
National Enquirer
who broke the story of Tiger Woods's infidelity online. It was an unpaid citizen journalist working for the
Huffington Post
who recorded candidate Barack Obama saying rural Americans are “bitter” and “cling to guns or religion.”

In the blogosphere, there is very little verification of information. The online universe is clogged with hearsay or worse. Shirley Sherrod was a government official who lost her job because the White House feared Fox TV would tag her as a racist. Sherrod, formerly an employee at the US Department of Agriculture, was fired when a video appeared on the website of a conservative activist. On the tape, Sherrod, who is black, appeared to be making racist statements at an NAACP conference about a white farm family in Georgia. However, the activist Andrew Breitbart had doctored the tape in an attempt to defame Sherrod and embarrass the White House. What Sherrod was actually doing was expressing gratitude to the farmers for helping her move beyond prejudice.

Rule 3: An Interview Is Not a Conversation

Be extremely wary of the reporter who attempts to sweet-talk you into a false sense of complacency. Skilled journalists are adept at getting their sources to relax and say more than they intended. Some reporters will try to make the interview feel like a conversation at a lively cocktail party. He will posture as a sympathetic friend and give every appearance that he is hanging on your every word. Let's be honest: it's terribly flattering to have someone ask your opinion and seem to care about the answer. Don't be fooled. A reporter's number-one job is to break news.

BBC talk-show host Ruby Wax was a slick operator when it came to getting people to confess outrageous things. Wax charmed her way into Imelda Marcos's closet to reveal the Filipino First Lady's lavish shoe collection. She rummaged through the refrigerator of the Duchess of York and Weight Watchers pitchwoman Sarah Ferguson and coaxed O. J. Simpson into pretending to stab her with a banana. By projecting more like a pussy cat than a pushy broad, Wax was able to soften up her targets to feed the public's insatiable appetite for the foibles of well-known figures.

Neither Friend nor Foe

Reporters should not be viewed as confidants, but neither should you take an adversarial position with them. Reporters are not friends, nor are they enemies. There is nothing to be gained from expressing disdain for them or their profession. This doesn't mean that some interviews shouldn't be offlimits. There are occasions when it makes sense to say no. One can only speculate why Elizabeth Edwards would inflame the media circus with a promotional book tour in the wake of the news about her husband's infidelity. Observers described the book tour as one of the most bizarre publicity jaunts ever, as reporters not surprisingly asked about husband John's cheating while she battled cancer. NPR's Michele Norris's question about the possibility that her children may have a half sister left Elizabeth tongue-tied: “Eh, eh, ugh, am, not that I know of [pause] uhm, ugh, uhm….”
¹⁴
Edwards, a veteran of multiple campaigns, needlessly put herself in a vulnerable position. It may have been an effort to control the story, but her nonanswers simply raised more questions.

Rule 4: Dealing with the Gonzo Journalist

It used to be highly entertaining to tune into
60 Minutes
on Sunday nights to watch Mike Wallace show up unannounced on the doorstep of a reticent source with the camera rolling. Who can forget the encounter with the irate guy with the bulldozer who tried to run down the camera operator? It seemed clear that investigative journalists were the good guys going after bad guys to protect the public. Nowadays, the line between what is news and what is entertainment has been sullied. The victims are sometimes innocent, and the tactics are much more nefarious. Ambush interviews, doctored videos, and hidden cameras are now the tactics of activists with political agendas. They are using new media tools to discredit individuals and spread misinformation. If confronted unannounced, you always have the right to decline an interview.

The goal in an unexpected encounter is to disengage as quickly and politely as possible. Assume you are being taped, so be cordial as you take a minute to introduce yourself and shake hands. Resist the temptation to
answer any questions. Firmly, with a smile, say you would be happy to discuss the matter but do not have time right then and there. Exchange business cards and suggest the “journalist” contact you to schedule a time to talk. Then, calmly turn and walk away. The reporter may follow and throw questions. Stay calm and stick to your guns. Don't attempt to respond. You may think you have a good retort, but if the tape is edited out of context, you can end up looking bad. Later, after you have done some checking, decide if you want to do the interview. It is much easier to decline to talk over the telephone.

Rule 5: Avoid Foot-in-Mouth Disease

The irony of the new media age is that more people are providing more news, but the quality hasn't improved. The limitations of the media complicate the process, but not every mistake can be blamed on unskilled or biased reporters hustling to break stories and meet deadlines. Don't aid and abet in your destruction by committing a faux pas. Loose lips can be your undoing, especially now that verbal mistakes move at the speed of sound in the social media world. A well-spoken woman is wise to the ways her own words can be her undoing. Here are strategies to avoid foot-inmouth disease.

Off-the-Cuff, Digitally Speaking

Off-the-cuff gaffes occur when a spokesperson blurts something out before thinking about how to express what she wants to say. People are now
making the same mistake with social media tools. Whether it rolls off your tongue or your Twitter
^®
account, there is no pulling it back. It is going straight into your mother's ears or a digital data bank. Meghan McCain got caught playing hooky from a book tour via her own tweets. The daughter of Senator John McCain canceled a book-signing appearance due to “several unforeseen professional responsibilities.”
¹⁵
McCain blew her cover when she tweeted that she was “headed to sin city with her favorite crew of sinners.”