NPRSpeak

[Rick H Kennerly]

|o| Sometimes. What I find interesting about Morning Edition are the many
|o| dubbed interviews. It is obvious that some producer has
|o| actually done the
|o| two-way. Then Edwards is handed a script of the questions, and his
|o| questions are dubbed into the interview by very expert digital editors.
|o|
|o| I dunno, but personally I find this a bit dishonest.
|o|

Dunno, Ophra does the same thing, I read.  Sometimes she has 5 or 6
interviews going on at the same time.  I'm sure most "name" interviewers do
it, too.

For NPR, the idea is that it provides continuity of voice in the program and
the technique certainly makes for a better interview.  For instance, several
years back a coworker at our university was interviewed at some length by
NPR about a cancer awareness event that she had organized, frankly I forget
what the "twist" was that made the event unique & radio worthy.  She was
disappointed by per performance during what turned out to be a very long
interview, about 45 minutes.  The NPR reporter lead Louise all around the
topic chatting about all kinds of things while dipping in and out of the
main theme.  And Louise didn't have much hope for the final result but was
pleasantly surprised by the aired product.

The 20-second Weekend Edition piece that finally aired with Scott Simon's
voice asking the questions was coherent, up-beat, backtrack & stammer free,
had a pleasantly loose style that sounded conversational, and portrayed
Louise and her cause in a favorable light.  The process is really no
different than trusting a pen & ink reporter to treat you fairly after a
long rambling interview, I suppose.  I imagine that when one sees Howard
Fineman with Someone You've Never Heard of as the byline in Newsweek, the
same thing has happened.

If you listen at the end of the show, the reporter who did the interview is
identified and recognized for her work on the interview.

rhk