I was asked to interview Katie Couric. One problem. I am not a journalist! | #katieshow #celebrity
If you haven’t, check out my Introduction to the Katie Couric Interview Series.
I’m not a journalist. I’m a mom. I’m a blogger.
I don’t really report the news, I promote it.
I would imagine that’s why I received a call (to my surprise), last week, from Disney. The call came through on my home phone from an “Anonymous” number, and I almost didn’t answer it.
I was cooking dinner while holding Jett, and of course, he was trying to bend over to get into my shirt because he was hungry. Braxton and Hawk were fighting over their Xbox game, or something, and Kylie was trying to get my attention. My phone was also breaking up, and it was a bit hard to understand the person on the other end!
I did happen to get a few points out of the conversation. I remember her saying her name and mentioning another name and “new show”. I agreed to meet whomever it was on Tuesday at 11:15 for an interview at ABC 13, and I ended the conversation with “Can you shoot me an email with the details, please?” (That was pretty much to cover my rear because I had absolutely not idea what I’d just agreed to!
The next morning, I received an email with the subject of:
Katie Couric Meeting & Interview this TUESDAY, AUGUST 21
I just sat there for a minute, remembering hearing the name Katie in the phone conversation! Then in hit me….
Really? Interview Katie Couric? Who does that?
We’re talking about a world recognized, award-winning journalist – what in the world do you ask an award-winning journalist!?
Katie, the new talk show featuring Katie Couric premiers September 10, on ABC, and they want ME to interview HER about it.
So I took to Facebook, and asked my friends and readers for their input. All in all, at the interview, things went by so quickly, and she was so pressed for time because of a flight change, that we (by we, I mean me and one other blogger from the Houston Chronicle), only had about 10 minutes with Katie!
I didn’t want to ask questions that I could look up online or that I thought everyone was asking on her trip around the country to promote her new show. I felt that would be a waste of my time, and hers, so I chose a couple, printed them out, and went on my merry way!
This experience highlighted the essence of media training, emphasizing the need to craft interview questions that stand out. Understanding the landscape of media interview questions is crucial in ensuring a meaningful and engaging conversation. It’s about striking a balance between addressing pertinent topics and offering an original perspective that captivates both the interviewee and the audience.
As I continue to navigate the world of media interviews, this encounter with Katie Couric serves as a valuable lesson in the art of asking questions that leave a lasting impression.
Before I left, I asked Andy if my new phone had a feature on it that I could use as a recorder, because I’m terrible with taking notes. He told me that Evernote actually had one built in, so I checked it really quickly, saw it, and closed it. Mistake.
I left my camera at home, because I don’t like it, and because I just got a new phone that has a great camera on it. Another mistake.
I show up to the news station about 45 minutes early, so I sat in my car and did a little Facebooking and tweeting to pass the time. The security guard walked by and kinda looked at me, smiled, nodded, and went on his way, so I decided that right about that time was a good time to go in and check in.
After about 15 minutes of chit chat with a Telly (Promotions Producer) and Wendy (Director of Special Projects) Katie arrives with her publicist and her stylist (I’m assuming it was her stylist).
I introduced myself as Lisa Johnston the “Mommy Blogger” which is a name I’m not fond of but I’ve I’ve had to learn to like, because face it, that’s just what we’re called (in this case, it was mainly so I would be recognized as someone who was supposed to be there!). Katie seemed happy to see me, and was interested in my blog and the things I write about!
This is why it was a mistake to take just my phone. The pictures I took came out very grainy, because I wasn’t able to use a flash due to a segment taping!
I suddenly felt under dressed, under prepared, and way under qualified to take on this job! It’s been asked if I was star-struck. No, not at all, but let’s get one thing straight. I’m in the business of conversation. I get to know people. I chat back and forth, in conversation. I don’t know the first thing about journalistic etiquette! Katie Couric is the journalist, not me, and it showed!
However, Katie was graceful, funny, and extremely down to earth with all of us. I think the one thing that most of us forget about celebrities is that away from the stories, away from the papers and cameras, they’re people, too. I was glad to be able to see a side of Katie that wasn’t newsworthy or political. We just had had conversation. She listened to me, and I listened to her. In the end, that’s all anyone can ask.
Some of the topics we talked about that you’ll want to read about more in my series are:
- Parenting issues
- Unemployment rate among college graduates
- Over-parenting
- Attachment parenting
Stay tuned to hear more about the questions I asked, the one question SHE asked me that I never thought a celebrity would ask me and not even flinch when I gave her the answer!
You can find all the posts in my series under the Katie Couric tag of my blog!
For more information about Katie’s show, check her out at the following places!
Katie Couric is an award-winning journalist and TV personality, well-known cancer advocate, and New York Times best-selling author of The Best Advice I Ever Got: Lessons From Extraordinary Lives.