All media interviews are paid interviews
Found this interesting observation about paying for media interviews. It’s from Don Hewitt, creator and producer of 60 Minutes, in his 2001 book Tell Me A Story:
The truth is that reputable newspapers and reputable news broadcasts pay for interviews all the time, not in cash but in something more valuable - newspaper space and airtime for an author to plug a book or a movie start to plug a movie or a politician to plug a pet cause. Who in his right mind sits down to be interviewed without getting something in return? And let’s face it, “getting something in return” is the equivalent of “getting paid.” And we all willingly go along with it, because if we don’t, 20/20 will, and if The New York Times won’t The Washington Post will. Is there something wrong with it? No! Just stop all this ‘holier than thou’ jazz that we don’t pay for interviews because everybody does, all the time.
- Chapter 13, p.229
Posted: February 12th, 2007 under Getting an Interview, Paying for Interviews.