There are a lot of important skills a news anchor needs to succeed in today's climate, but one of the most relevant is the ability to conduct great interviews. This is an important attribute to have in this field and one that news anchors can improve upon in a couple of ways.

Be Candid About the Questions Being Asked

Typically before someone is interviewed by a news anchor, they'll go through an intake process where they're told exactly what questions are covered. This is supposed to keep interviewees calm and prepared for the entire process.

When you walk people through these questions, make sure you're candid about what's going to be covered. You want to start this relationship off on a truthful note because it will bring the most out of the interviewee. They can give their own candid responses and have no problem completing the interview in its entirety because they're well aware of the questions being asked. 

Select an Appropriate Location

You want news interviews coming off as professional because what's recorded can be used to further your news anchor career. It starts with an appropriate location for where the interview is being held. You need a place that's relatively quiet so that the interviewee can be heard and can hear what they're being asked.

The location also should have relevance to the purpose of the news interview. For instance, if you're interviewing a witness of a major car crash, you want to be around the general vicinity of the accident site because it helps tell a visual story before anything is ever said. 

Establish Your Own Goals

You want news interviews to have structure because then they'll come off as more professional, as well as improve the overall flow between you and those being interviewed. You'll create a sturdy foundation that both you and the interviewee can build off of by having some goals for the interview.

Why are you interviewing a certain individual and featuring their story in the news? Once you make this conclusion, think about the questions that you can ask that are tailored around this goal. You can then interview people having a clear path and direction of where you want to take this process. 

Interviews are a big part of any news anchor's career. They are a visual medium that people can get behind when trying to learn about events that have transpired. Getting better at giving interviews and managing them is all about planning. From speaking with interviewees in advance to planning out a general flow, preparation can help you conduct news interviews in a more compelling and effective manner. 

To learn more about interview tactics, consider watching some of your favorite anchor's interviews, such as Rich Sanchez's interviews.