Confrontational sources create angst

BY MARIELLE COLLINS

Listening to an angry preacher rant on the phone was not what Jasmine Atwell, of Boynton, Fla., expected during an interview.

She was working on an article on the increase in Islamophobia, which is prejudice or fear toward Muslims, when the preacher called all Muslims terrorists and Muhammad a pedophile. Atwell’s father is Muslim.

She said she ignored her feelings to get the interview.

“The things he was saying were very controversial and offensive even if you aren’t Muslim,” Atwell said. “I couldn’t get a word in edgewise and just had to wait until he was done.”

Keelin O'Donoghue interviews a source for her "Go Green" story.

Throughout the journalism program at the National High School Institute, cherubs have multiple opportunities to interview people and learn to handle new and, in Atwell’s case, confrontational situations.

Instructor John Kupetz said that of the three pillars of good journalism - writing, reporting and having a good topic - reporting is the most important. But he added, the core of good reporting is the ability to get a good interview. Because this element is so crucial to a journalist, cherubs practice interviewing techniques.

“At cherubs we learn that it’s important to research the person you’re interviewing and bring up things you know about them to make them feel comfortable,” Leah Sheesley, of San Antonio said. “You always want to go right to the source so you can get the best information.”

Atwell said she wanted to be prepared for her interview with the preacher so that she wouldn’t say something that would make him stop talking.

“I looked at his Web site before I interviewed him, so I was emotionally prepared and ready for what he was going to tell me,” Atwell said. “I knew it wasn’t going to be anything good.”

Toby Hollis, of Piedmont, Calif., said he tries to let interviewees know he sympathizes with the discomfort people may feel when being interviewed.

“I try to ask questions that spark [my sources] to feel comfortable just talking more naturally,” Hollis said.

Even though Atwell’s interview was challenging because she was talking with someone whose values and ideas differ from her own, it was still productive, she said.

“It gave me good experience,” Atwell said. “And I got what I needed for the article.”