6 types of questions reporters invariably ask
By Brad Phillips | Posted: August 7, 2014
In 1999, upon reporting for my first Sunday shift at CNN, I was invited into a “question” meeting
with Wolf Blitzer and his executive producer.
1999年，當我正在CNN值週日班時，我被邀請參與 Wolf Blitzer和他的執行製作監製的
“詢問”會議。
The three of us sat around for 15 minutes, coming up with questions for former Vice President
Dan Quayle, who was mounting a bid for the 2000 GOP nomination.
我們三人圍坐約15分鐘，為前副總統丹·奎爾 (Dan Quayle)，這位被2000年共和黨提名者提
出問題。
We developed a seemingly impressive list of questions, but I noticed that the questions
all fit inside certain categories. Some questions were intended to be “stumpers”;
others called for speculation.
我們開發一些看似令人印象深刻的問題，但我注意到問題都適合確實類別內幕。
有些問題的目的是“政治演說者”;其他的叫做投機炒作。
That taught me an important lesson. Spokespersons don’t have to prepare for every
possible question. They simply must prepare for every type of question. Below, you’ll
find the types of questions reporters always seem to ask—and how to answer them with
ease.
這教會了我重要的一課。發言人不必為每種可能的問題做準備。他們只是必須為每
個類型的問題做好準備。以下，你會發現問題，記者似乎總是會問的類型，以及如何
輕鬆地回答這些問題。
1. Questions you don’t know the answer to
1.你不知道答案的問題
Many of our trainees get stumped during a live interview when they’re asked a question
to which they don’t know the answer.
For example, a physician might be asked, “How many people are diagnosed with Stage
4 liver cancer each year?” If she doesn’t know the answer, she might stumble before finally
saying, “I don’t know.”
許多我們的實習學員在現場採訪時被問了一個他們不知道答案的問題給難倒了。
例如，內科醫生可能會被問，“每年有多少人被診斷為第四期肝癌？”如果她不知道
答案，她可能猶豫不決的到最後才說，“ 我不知道。”
There’s nothing wrong with saying, “I don’t know”—but there’s a better way to handle that
question during friendly interviews. Click here to see the “Peter Jennings Rule.”
說“我不知道”這沒有什麼不對，但是在友善的面談有一種更好的方式來處理這
個問題。點擊此處查看“Peter Jennings 規則”。
2. Questions that call for speculation
2. 問題要求推測
Imagine you’re an advocate trying to pass a piece of legislation. You’re being interviewed
when the reporter suddenly asks, “So, what’s the bottom line? Is this law going to pass?”
想像一下，你是一個試圖通過一項立法的倡導者。你接受採訪的時候，記者突然問：
“那麼，底線是什麼？這條法律要通過？“
Don’t take the bait. If you guess wrong, reporters will be able to use your quote against you
forever, and your credibility may take a hit.
Stick with the facts. Answer by saying something like, “Well, we have more support for the
bill than we’ve ever had before, and we are more hopeful than ever that we can get this passed.”
If pressed again, you can follow up with, “Well, although I can’t speculate, I can tell you that….”
不要中圈套。如果你猜錯了，記者將永遠對你使用您的引述，你的信譽會受到打擊。
堅持採用事實。這樣回答說法，“那麼，這項法案我們已經收到比以前更多的支持，
我們比以往更具信心此案能通過。”
如果再次被緊迫盯人，可以按此方式，“好吧，雖然我不能猜測，但我可以告訴你......”
3. Questions that ask for your personal opinion
3. 問你個人意見的問題
Whole Foods Chairman and CEO John Mackey sparked a customer rebellion in 2009
when he wrote an op-ed for The Wall Street Journal opposing President Obama’s health
care reform proposal.
He defended himself days later, by writing, “I was asked to write an op-ed piece, and I gave
my personal opinions…Whole Foods as a company has no official position on the issue.”
健全食品公司董事長兼首席執行官約翰·麥基在2009年的時候贊同了客戶的反抗，他在
華爾街日報寫了一篇專欄文章反對美國總統奧巴馬的醫療改革方案。
過些天後 ，他藉寫作為自己辯解，“我被要求寫一個專欄特寫，並給予我的個人意見......
健全食品公司在這個問題上沒有任何官方立場。”
Nonsense.
荒謬
When you are identified as a spokesperson for a company, group, or organization, there’s no
such thing as a personal opinion. The media will identify you as a representative of your
organization. Period.
該媒體將您標識為所在組織的典型代表。就這樣，沒什麼好說的。
Therefore, do not offer a personal opinion. Instead, say, “Well, I’m speaking for the organization,
not myself, and what we believe is….”
Just how important is that? Ask Mr. Mackey. He has some free time now that he’s out as
chairman.
因此，不要提供個人意見。反而應說：“哦，我為組織說明，而不是為我自己，
我們所相信的是...。”
這有多麼的重要？問 Mr. Mackey。現在他不再擔任董事長所以他有時間。
4. Yes or no questions
4. 是或否的問題
“This is a simple yes or no—aren’t your financial forecasts occasionally wrong?”
“這是一個簡單的是或否問題，你的財務預測不會偶爾錯了嗎？”
During our media training sessions, I almost always trap a trainee with a “yes or no” question.
Here’s why they’re so insidious: They almost always have an obvious answer, and everyone
watching the interview knows it. But if you answer with a direct “yes or no,” the resulting quote
will be awful.
在我們的媒體培訓課程，我大部分會對實習生用“是或否”的問題設陷阱以見習。這也是為
什麼他們是如此陰險的：他們幾乎總有一個明顯的答案，每個人看採訪的都知道這一點。
但是，如果你直接回答“是或否”，所產生的引文將是很可怕的。
Let’s say you answer the question by saying, “Yes, sometimes our forecasts are wrong, but
they’re right a lot more often than they’re wrong.” The resulting news story will almost certainly read, “When asked whether his company’s forecasts were often wrong, company spokesman
Bob Smith said ‘yes.’”
比方說，你回答了這個問題：“是的，有時候我們的預測是錯誤的，但他們對的地方往
往比他們錯了的時候多出很多。”由此產生的新聞報導幾乎肯定會被解讀，“當被問及他
公司的預測往往是錯誤的，公司發言人鮑勃·史密斯說“'是。“
You don’t have to answer on their terms. Instead, say something like, “You know, it’s not so
simple. The question isn’t whether forecasts are perfect, but whether ours is the most reliable
in the marketplace. The answer, according to three independent studies, is that ours is the most
accurate forecast available today.”
您對他們的條件不必回答。相反，這樣說，“你知道，這不是那麼簡單。問題不在於預測
是否是完美的，但無論如何我們是最可靠的市場。答案，根據三個獨立的研究中，我們是
今天最準確可用的預測“。
5. Third-party questions
5. 第三方問題
“ Your competitor recently released a similar product. I’ve heard some people in your
company bash their product. Why do you think their product isn’t as good as yours?”
“你的競爭對手最近發布了類似的產品。我聽說有些人在你的公司砸了他們的產品。
為什麼你認為他們的產品不如你的？“
Little helps a news organization sell papers or attract viewers more than conflict.
Therefore, reporters will often ask you to comment on third parties, usually your competitors
or opponents. Instead of taking the bait, answer the question by focusing on your own attributes.
衝突對新聞機構賣出報紙或吸引觀眾小有幫助。
因此，記者經常會問你對第三方的評論，通常是你的競爭對手或對手。而不是採取誘餌，
專注回答屬於自己的問題。
For example, you might say, “Well, let me talk about our product. Ours is the only one in the
marketplace that….”
Occasionally, you might want your quote to address your opponent’s flaws, but because that
quote will inevitably be the one included in the story, make sure it’s consistent with your overall communications strategy.
例如，你可能會說，“好吧，讓我談一下我們的產品。我們是唯一一家在市場上的...“。
有時，你可能希望你的評論來標識你對手的破綻，但因為引述將不可避免地包含成內成故
事之一部分，請確保它與你的整體傳播戰略是一致的。
6. The repeated question repeated
6. 反复重複的問題
Reporters are notorious for asking the same question with slightly different words several
times.
記者對問同樣的問題確用略有不同的話重述數次是聲名狼藉的。
If you’re asked the same questions repeatedly, remember these two things:
First, stick to your messages. You should alter the specific words of each response, but
not the themes of your answers.
如果你被反复問同樣的問題時，請記住這兩個東西：
首先，堅持你的訊息。你應該改變每個回應的特定用詞，而不是你答案的主題。
Second, watch your tone. You should be as calm the sixth time the reporter asks you a
question as you were the first, because the reporter will inevitably use your least flattering
response.
因為記者會不可避免地使用你最不討人喜歡的回應。
Remember: A reporter’s job is to get you off message and off tone. If the reporter succeeds,
this is what can happen.
請記住：記者的工作是讓你偏離消息和提示。如果記者成功，這是可能發生的。
Brad Phillips is author of The Media Training Bible: 101 Things You Absolutely, Positively Need to Know Before Your Next Interview . He is also the president of Phillips Media Relations, a media and presentation training firm, and blogs at Mr. Media Training , where a version of this story first appeared.
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