Interview Question Types and Structure

Types of Questions:
Open: An open question is a question that needs an explanation with the answer. They have an infonaut amount of relevant answers as this could just be based on a opinion or be personal to them. This answer is mostly likely not going to be given by another person because no two people are exactly the same. An example would be, "what are you doing at the weekend?" Watch this video until two mins.

Closed: A closed question is the opposite to an open question. A closed question can be answered with a one or two word answer. These aren't very good at obtaining information as the answer wouldn't be very detailed. Often there is a 50/50 chance that some will give the same answer as the previous person especially if it is a one word answer like yes or no. An example would be, "do you enjoy playing football?" Watch the video from 48 seconds.

Single: A single question is a question that inquires about something. These questions are fairly short, and often the answer is also very short as well, this is because,  a single question is very similar to a closed question. An example of a single question is, "is that job offer still available?"

Multiple: A multiple question is similar to a single question but, they have more than one line of inquiry. Where as a single question would say, "have you got any of that chocolate left?", a multiple question would say, "have you got any of that chocolate left, and could I have some if you have any left?" This adds more information onto the end of the question so the answer will be more detailed. Watch this clip between twenty and thirty eight seconds.

Direct: A direct question is a question that gets straight to the point. They are very precise and assertive so they can get the direct answer that they want. They are always punctuated with a question mark, where as a less direct question doesn't have a question mark. An example would be, "why are you supporting this position?" Watch the video from 59 seconds.

Suggestive: A suggestive question is a question that implies that the interviewer knows something about the interviewee that other people may not know. It is also a very direct and assertive question and is very often a personal question designed to interrogate the interviewee, An example would be, "are you still stabbing people?" Watch this clip at two minutes thirty five seconds and finish it at four minutes thirty seconds.

Interview Structure:

Confidence Building: Confidence building is when the interviewer and interviewee first meet and the interviewer has to break the ice with them. They do this because they are trying to build a relationship with the interviewee so they can get better answers out of the interviewee. If this stage is missed then the interviewee may not feel as comfortable and that may lead to a hostile interview. Watch the clip until thirty seconds.

Introduction: The introduction is the start of the interview. This is when the interviewer and the interviewee are in the very early stages of the interview. They are just there to warm to the crowd (if its a chat show) or settle in in front of the TV cameras. If this stage was missed then the interview would feel rushed and unprofessional.Watch the clip until sixteen seconds.

Key Questions: Key questions are the first questions that are asked in the interview. This follows up nicely from the introduction because the interview can gradually progress, These questions are generally simple questions because the more detailed questions are yet to come. If this stage was missed then it would also feel rushed and unprofessional as it would jump from the introduction to the developmental questions.

Developmental Questions: Developmental questions are more detailed than the key question. This is because the lead into more detailed answers given by the interviewee. Often these are very personal question which generally brings out the emotion in the interview. If this stage was missed then the viewers would not get the information that they would want. Watch until four minutes and forty five seconds.

Wind Up: The wind up is when the interviewer has asked all his developmental questions and is starting to finish the interview gradually. They may do this by interacting with the audience more or by complementing the interviewee. If this stage was missed then the interview would end very awkwardly. Start this clip at three minutes fifteen seconds and stop it at three minutes thirty.

Summary: A summary is when the interview is finished and the interviewer summarizes what has gone on in the interview and then finishes with a catch phrase or just a simple thank you. This shows the audience that the interview has finished, If this stage was missed then the audience wouldn't know if the interview was finished.In this clip start it at seven minutes fifteen seconds and end it at seven minutes fifty seconds.

Soundbites: A soundbite is a short speech/noise/catch phrase that is played at the end of a TV or radio program. This indicates to the audience that the program/interview is finished.  This is often used on chat shows to add some comedy to the show. Watch this clip from thirty two seconds.

Journalistic Context

PRINT:
Newspapers: A newspaper is very formal unlike a magazine as their target audience is generally older people from the age of 35 onwards. They reach their audience by including all relevant content in their articles. Their interviews are always very formal so they can get the most information to the viewer. For example this interview with Tony is very formal and informative.

Magazines: A magazine is very informal compared to a newspaper. How informal a magazine is depends on its target audience. For example if the magazine is aimed at children between the age of 5 and 11, then it would be more informal than a magazine aimed at 20 to 30 year olds. They have interviews which are generally informal but have elements that are formal. For example this interview with Daniel Radcliffe for a magazine is a mixture of formal and informal. 

ONLINE:
Websites: A website is similar to an online newspaper/magazine. They just have the owner of the websites opinion and generally just their views. They will sometimes have interviews with famous people that can explain more about the subject. These can be a mixture of formal and informal interviews depending on the subject.
http://www.swfc.co.uk/news/

Online Newspaper/Magazine: An online newspaper is basically just a newspaper/magazine that has its own website. It has similar content on it to what was published in the newspaper/magazine. Often it is more frequently updated so it will have the latest news, gossip and interviews on their. Depending on the target audience, the interview style will often be the same as the print version.
 http://www.fourfourtwo.com/news#:yhsdpNuPJ6bjQA

TELEVISION:
Documentaries: A documentary is different to the news or something like a chat show because it often just focuses on one specific topic over the whole documentary. Whilst the other to can have lots of other aspects. An interview in a documentary is there just to find out facts and opinions as it is often very serious.

News: The news is different to a documentary or a chat show because it focuses on many topics such as sports, politics, finance and many others. They do this because they need to appeal to many people who will prefer to hear different aspects of the news.

Other (Chat Show): A chat show is different to the news and a documentary because often a chat show asks a mixture of formal and informal questions. These informal questions are generally quite personal and unique.

RADIO:
Guests On Shows: This is very similar to a talk show but it is completely different to radio news. It is similar to a talk show because they both are basically interview shows. It is different to radio news because the interviews would be more friendly with a guest rather than a recorded into for the radio news.

Talk Shows: Talk show interviews are very similar to guests on shows. This is because the questions that will be asked are probably going to be similar (formal or informal). Whilst they are similar, radio news interviews will not be similar to a radio talk show because the interview won't be as friendly.

Radio News: Radio news interviews aren't very similar to talk shows or guests on shows. This is because the news is meant to be very serious so they need relevant interviews that get straight to the point so they can get all the facts efficiently as possible.

Documentary Conventions

Expository:
An expository documentary's speak directly to the viewer. They often have a voiceover which proposes a strong argument or point of view. These documentaries are there to try and persuade the viewer that their point of view is right. They try to expose a person or topic to get their point across.

Observational:
In an observational documentary, the idea is to observe the events as you see them. This type of documentary generally doesn't have a voiceover so often there is just music playing in the background. Not much editing is involved with an observational documentary as the documentary is meant to be seen as it was really filmed.

Interactive:

An interactive documentary is a documentary made up of mostly interviews which they balance out to give an overall balanced view. An interactive documentary that is made well will allow the people in the documentary to express their opinions and views on a topic. http://www.theguardian.com/world/ng-interactive/2014/jul/23/a-global-guide-to-the-first-world-war-interactive-documentary

Reflexive:
A reflexive documentary is a documentary in which is often in front of the camera and gives a narration. This helps the audience understand the documentary better. It also make the audience aware of the problems the film maker has when producing this documentary. They are also very truthful documentaries as they are often about real things.

Performative:
A performative documentary gives off a lot of personal emotions about the film maker. They are often documentaries that are close to the film makers heart so often they can be bias to one side rather than the other. They are powerful and really grab the attention of the audience.

Realism:
These types of documentaries often use actuality footage in the documentary so it looks like you are there. It is also evidence that this event has happen in real life. Sometimes this footage can be manipulated to make it look like it shows something else. But they are not scripted and do not use actors.

Dramatization:
These types of documentaries are the opposite of realism documentaries. This is because they use staged shots, often with actors in to help the audience understand the documentary better or in more detail.

Narrativisation:
These types of documentaries try to put the events in chronological order so that they are in a story format. It makes the documentary feel like a film/story, where you feel emotion for the characters/people/things involved. They only use actuality footage so they are not dramatised.