Reporters want one thing: quotes
Short, tight, self-contained answers that survive being pulled out of context. If a sentence would not make sense as a standalone quote, rework it. The reporter is not looking for a lecture. They are looking for a line they can highlight in 11-point type.
Use AI to research the reporter and outlet first
Two prompts to keep in your back pocket:
Write out your ideal answers before the call
What would you LOVE to see in print? Write those exact sentences. Reporters often quote them word-for-word. Pre-written quotes are not "scripted." They are professional.
Build your Media Messaging Grid
Three categories. For phone interviews, keep the grid in front of you. For in-person, hold the three category headings in your head. Bring every answer back to one of them.
Practice once, out loud, with someone playing the reporter
Record it. Listen back. The first interview should not be the real one. You will feel "warmed up" only after you have already finished. Practice gets you warmed up before it counts.
Use your hands, even on the phone
It changes the quality of your voice. Standing up helps too. Sounds silly, works every time.
Energy, energy, energy
Flat phone interviews produce flat quotes. Show up like you are recording the most important episode of your career. The reporter can hear it. So can the page.
Everything you say is on the record
Including pre-call chitchat and post-interview small talk. Do not repeat a reporter's negative phrasing if you do not want to see it printed under your name.
When the reporter goes quiet or you hear typing, slow down
They are transcribing your quote. Their silence is a green light. Give them space to capture it cleanly.
Give the reporter your one-sentence description of yourself
They almost always print it word-for-word. Do not leave it to chance: "Jess Todtfeld, President of Success in Media, is a New York City-based media trainer who has produced more than 5,000 TV segments and reached over 100,000 people on six continents."
Bonus tips
If a reporter calls cold, buy yourself ten minutes
"I am absolutely available. Let me wrap up what I am in the middle of. Can I call you back in ten minutes?" That gives you time to write out your three-category grid and a killer first answer. Most reporters will say yes.
Loop in your communications person if you have one
Compliance, legal, or PR may have context you need before you talk. Build the protocol once, follow it every time.
One more thing: the article will live forever and feed AI
Online articles are now training data. What you say to a Forbes reporter today gets indexed by Google, cited by ChatGPT, and quoted in answers to questions that have not been asked yet. This makes a quotable answer worth more than ever, and a sloppy answer harder to live down. See How to Be Quoted by AI for more on that side of the equation.