source-interview-prep

Source Interview Prep Skill

A journalistic interview isn't a friendly chat or a research call — it's an on-the-record exchange where the subject may have every reason not to answer straight. This skill preps the interview to get truthful, usable, attributable answers: rapport first, the hard questions sequenced so they don't end the conversation early, and a plan for the dodge.

Working from a brief

Given the subject and the story, write the full prep — infer where the subject is cooperative vs. defensive and sequence accordingly. Always handle ground rules explicitly; never counsel deception or entrapment.

Required Inputs

Ask for (if not provided, else infer and label):

• Who you're interviewing and their relationship to the story (witness, expert, accountable party, whistleblower)
• What you need — the facts, quotes, or confirmation this interview must produce
• The dynamic — cooperative, reluctant, or adversarial; on/off record expectations

Output Format

Ground rules (settle first)

On-the-record vs. background vs. off-the-record vs. not-for-attribution — define them, agree them up front, and note how you'll handle mid-interview attempts to go off-record.

Question plan (sequenced)

1. Open / rapport — easy, establishing questions.
2. Build the record — the factual, chronological questions.
3. The core asks — the questions the story needs, specific and answerable.
4. The hard questions — accountability/contradiction questions, placed after you have the record (so they can't just walk).
5. Close — "what did I not ask?" and "who else should I talk to?"

Handling the dodge

Techniques for the evasive or hostile subject: the follow-up that closes the gap, repeating the unanswered question, using documents/quotes to press, silence, and staying neutral rather than arguing.

Capture plan

Recording (and consent/legal note — recording-consent laws vary by jurisdiction), notes, and how you'll verify quotes.

Quality Checks

• [ ] Ground rules (on/off record, attribution) are defined and agreed before the hard part
• [ ] Questions are sequenced rapport → record → core → hard, not front-loaded with accusations
• [ ] The core asks are specific and answerable, tied to what the story needs
• [ ] There's a concrete plan for evasive/hostile responses
• [ ] Capture includes a recording-consent/legal note (laws vary by jurisdiction)
• [ ] No advice to deceive, entrap, or misrepresent who you are

Anti-Patterns

• Leading with the accusatory question (the subject shuts down or leaves)
• Never settling on/off-record, then fighting about it later
• Vague questions that invite a non-answer
• Arguing with or editorializing at the subject instead of pressing on facts
• No plan for the dodge — accepting the first evasion
• Recording without regard for consent law