On Tuesday, October 29, Seniors at MTA who are part of the Names, Not Numbers Holocaust Documentary Elective participated in a unique lunchtime assembly with a special guest. Jeff Salgo, a retired CBS News Producer, spoke to students about best practices of interviewing techniques that he gained from over 35 years lecturing about and working in the field of Broadcast Journalism. His session was designed to give the students tips and tricks for their upcoming interviews with Holocaust Survivors.
To start, Jeff introduced the mnemonic HRE, which stands for History, Research, and Empathy – the three major responsibilities an interviewer has to his interviewee. You must have a clear understanding of the background of the individual in front of you (History), you must show respect to that person by preparing adequately for the interview (Research), and you must give the interviewee whatever space necessary for him or her to deal with the emotional difficulty of going through the interview (Empathy). If you have mastered these three elements, Jeff explains, you will be able to create trust between the interviewer and the interviewee, and that is the foundation of an effective and qualitative interview. Jeff also reminded the students about the importance of speaking loudly, rewriting questions that lead to Yes or No answers, and asking follow-up questions to get the most out of the information the Survivor shares.
Students enjoyed the opportunity to ask Mr. Salgo about some of his personal experiences as a CBS News Director, Associate Director, and Producer. To the question about who was the most interesting person he interviewed, Jeff shared a story of the time Kermit the Frog was being interviewed on CBS, and rather than put the mic on Jim Henson, Jeff had the idea to put the mic on Kermit! Jeff is also a professional Scuba Diver, and he drew on his expertise in illustrating the piece of advice “Don’t Panic” by describing the time he was diving 60 feet underwater when he ran out of air in his oxygen tank.
These and other stories peppered his talk and made it entertaining, engaging, and fun for the students. When the session was over, students crowded around him, eager to continue the conversation and learn more.
The 22 Seniors involved in the Names, Not Numbers project will be working on preparing for their interviews over the next three weeks, and are looking forward to welcoming their Survivors to MTA in the fourth week of November.
Jeff Salgo is a retired Associate Director and Producer with CBS Network TV News.
He was there for 35 years working broadcasts such as The CBS Evening News, 60 Minutes, CBS News Special Reports, as well as The Sunday Morning Program.
He has traveled the planet as an underwater videographer and nature photographer and has made two documentaries. One is called “Breaking Free,” about young handicapped people learning to scuba dive. The other is about the Wounded Warriors. These are veterans with injuries and amputations learning to scuba dive.
These documentaries were produced with the assistance of the Handicapped Scuba Association and have been viewed by numerous dive organizations around the world and at prestigious Scuba shows around the US.
He has been teaching and speaking on interview techniques since 2019.
