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Subject:Covert Interviews From:Michael Ingram <Michael_Ingram -at- CPQM -dot- SAIC -dot- COM> Date:Sat, 7 Jan 1995 10:41:52 U
Subject: Time: 10:02 AM
OFFICE MEMO Covert Interviews Date: 1/7/95
Ms. La Rock makes an excellent point. My early background was journalism and
newspapers. And my experience was that several abilities help to
successfully interview someone who is not comfortable with being interviewed
or downright DOES NOT want to be interviewed, e.g., ability to listen, be
sensitive to the obvious and not so obvious signals, adaptability to the
situation, subject knowledge, humor. Ms. Gallaher is obviously also
understanding of these helpful talents. IMHO, all writers ought to be
required to spend a year learning how to get information from people whose
initial reaction is, at best, to turn away and, at worst, to vent their
frustration verbally or physically. After a year of such experiences,
getting an insecure or recalcitrant engineer to talk will be a whole lot
easier.
