So, you have agreed to a media interview and are preparing for it by coming up with answers to anticipated questions. You realize that at least one of your answers won’t satisfy a persistent reporter, but you have decided it’s in your best interest to give it anyway. And you are determined to stick with that answer no matter how much it might irritate the reporter.
A case in point occurred during an interview with Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, one of seven Republicans who voted to convict Donald Trump in his second impeachment trial. On Meet the Press, moderator Kristen Welker asked Cassidy several times whether he will vote for Trump in the 2024 election. Cassidy declines to commit to Trump, saying only that he will vote for a republican in the election. That answer leaves open the possibility that Cassidy will write-in a republican’s name or vote for a republican running as an independent. View the exchange below.
Now, we’re not crazy about Cassidy’s answer. We can debate whether it helped or hurt him. But our point is Cassidy didn’t let Welker intimidate him into changing his answer. He had decided to stick to his message, no matter what. That’s a good thing.
The lesson here is once you have decided to answer a question in a particular way, stick to it! Don’t be intimidated by a persistent reporter into changing or altering your answer. The reporter may not like it and that’s okay. Afterall, your job is not to please the reporter, but to deliver answers that you believe serve you best.