NPR Radio Interview Analysis

I listened to an interview on NPR's Fresh Air with Jason Segel, talking about the mysteries of guydom. The interviewer was very well-prepared with information about Segel's characters in his latest movie "I love you, man" as well as his previous one- "Forgetting Sarah Marshall". She had read a lot about his acting career and she had picked the right scenes which matched her questions, and she knew how to describe them in a way that would convey all details from the scene to the listeners as if they were watching the scene instead of just listening to it. She asked good follow-up questions which also showed good listening skills. She asked Segel if he agreed with his film's premise about how guys make friends with each other and that "buddy movies" allow men to open up. A couple of times Segel was describing a scene and it sounded a bit unclear and that's when the interviewer stepped in and explained what he was trying to say. She was also very comfortable talking about his naked scene in his latest movie. She asked him what he did to make his privates look good. And then she asked what his mother thought about that scene. She built up to questions using information she had read from her research on Segel and her follow-up questions targeted the most interesting things he had mentioned, for example how he became an actor and how he used his Drakula musical in one of his movies. The interviewer and her subject appeared to have a friendly relationship, she knew what questions to ask and how to follow up on the answers, and thus made the most of her 40-minute interview. Having picked the right scenes to play was a successful strategy because it gave direction to the interview. What I learned is that it's important for the interviewer to be in control in terms of how the interview would go, and preparation is key but asking the right follow-up questions is also very important. Therefore good listening skills are a must. She also wasn't afraid to ask some intimate questions and got some good answers out of them. So being brave is also a good strategy.