I'll take as much time as I want

Why would a journalist cut you off?

I was listening to the Today programme on BBC Radio 4 the other day and it happened again - one of the interviewees came out with "Let me finish my answer". I've had this, too, and it's easy to assume journalists are being rude if they're trying to hurry you along.

So here's the news: nobody wants to be rude to you deliberately. So why do we hurry you sometimes - and what can you do about it?

Be engaging

There actually isn't an easy way to put this: if a journalist interrupts or hurries you, it's because they're bored with your answer. Now, there's a good argument that says we're not there to be stimulated but to report your view, but we're human. If we get bored we'll try to move on.

It's also possible that we're trying to get a smarter quote out of you. We don't have the luxury of using as many words as we'd want; if a news editor has said "do this in 300 words" we do it in 300 words, that doesn't mean 300 words per quote. And if the script of a radio show says we move onto the next item at 8.13 then that's what we do. We therefore know that you've got 90 seconds to go on your item and you're still warming up.

So the first thing to do is to understand the medium you're in, spend less time clearing your throat and get to your point quickly.

Stick to your agenda

There may be times, however, when a journalist has their own agenda and you need to override it and get back to your point. If you're reading this blog, which is aimed at business clients, you'll probably be interviewed only because of some sort of expertise you have, so you have the right to take a certain measure of control.

Your problem is that telling the journalist to let you finish your point is always going to sound aggressive.

The key to making it work is to acknowledge the fresh question but finish the previous point, and signal that you'll be doing so. So you might say "I'll answer that in a second but first I need to finish the original answer"...or "That's an important point too and I'll get to it, but first your listeners/readers need to understand..." and then continue.

Always be calm, always sound positive and always get back to answering the new question as well as finishing the last - then everybody's happy and, truth be told, you'll probably sound more reasonable than the journalist.