By Sara Goldblatt

There is something I am beginning to truly enjoy about interviewing people for radio: getting them to describe themselves and their surroundings to the mic. 

Typically, an interview for print will leave the physical description up to the author: James, a middle-aged balding man with freckles on his nose, stated that... The author is in charge of coming up with a set of descriptive epithets. The interviewee provides information, answers questions--his or her words bear principally upon the topic in question. 

In the case of video, the video itself provides the description. We see James, with his freckles and his baldness and his middle age (and his numerous other characteristics), and hear him speak. James is recorded as he is on the day of the interview; various elements of his appearance may strike us in different ways, but video offers us all of James, as well as his surroundings. 

In radio, the situation is different. One of the first questions I ask when carrying out an interview is: "Could you describe where we are and what you are wearing?" People are sometimes taken aback. Can't you see me? So I explain: "This is for the radio. Listeners can't see you, you need to show them with your words!" All of a sudden, the interviewee--and not the journalist-- is in control of painting his or her own picture. I, the journalist, merely play the role of mike-holder. [Of course then I am free to edit as I wish, but I would be in favor of generally including this portion of self-description into the piece]. 

Hence, going back to our imaginary James, he may proclaim into the mike: "I am James, I'm just a dude having a good time in the park, I'm wearing my new Nike sweatshirt and am pumped about the concert!!" No mention of baldness, or middle age! Of course the narrator is free to include these details in the narration, but what a contrast! In this sense, radio truly empowers the interviewee more than other media can. I am convinced that it is a very powerful storytelling tool, and that it is specific to (the means formerly known as) radio.

P.S. Another excellent example of this figures in the brilliant "Don't Hang Up" BBC piece. When the producer asks the transvestite to describe herself on the phone--her description is fabulous--hoop earrings, lots of makeup, a mini-dress, etc. It not only gives us a set of details, but an idea of her list of priorities, and a glimpse of her daily grooming routine. Based on her self-description, it is clear that she knows she's hot stuff. Her own description probably beats any 'omniscient' narrator's description.