Meet The Press
Having spent so much of my career in radio as a news reporter, I still find it strange to be on the other side of the fence when I'm asked to give interviews to journalists. This week alone I've spoken to three different reporters and, I have to confess, I'm absolutely no good at "spinning a line". When a reporter asks me a question I tend to blab on until I hear the tiny click of their tape recorders switching off. When I tell the ´óÏó´«Ã½ Press Officers what I've said they tend to roll their eyes and threaten to lock me in my office.
Yesterday, for example, I had arranged to meet Fergus Sheppard from In cloak-and-dagger fashion we were to meet in a well-known coffee bar on Edinburgh's Royal Mile. How was I to know this particular American chain had two outlets on the same street? I sat upstairs sipping a massive mug of froth until Fergus called me on my mobile to explain that he was sitting at a similar table a quarter of a mile away. He said he would come to me, which was good of him.
I still can't shake off the routines I learned as a radio reporter. As Fergus arrived I realised we were sitting right under a speaker which was blaring out jazz muzak. I knew his tape recorder would pick that up and suggested we move to a quiet table. Then I babbled at him for half an hour about the future of radio, podcasting, on-demand services and digital platforms. I might even have mentioned some of the new programmes we have coming up on Radio Scotland this summer. That would have been a smart thing to do, but, well, maybe I forgot.
All went well, but Fergus looked a litle surprised when I pulled out my camera and asked if I could take his photograph for this diary.
"That's usually my line, " he said, but was a good sport when I asked him to pose "in a reporter-like way."
When the ´óÏó´«Ã½ Press Office get to hear about this I'll never be allowed out of the building again. And you can quote me on that.
