Use This Technique in Your Next Media Interview

Being interviewed by the media can be somewhat daunting for most of us, but with practice it’s a skill that can be mastered. We recently conducted media training for Liv Cycling’s Liv Racing athletes. As part of the training we discussed how to maintain control of the interview through the art of bridging.

Bridging is a simple technique that allows you to answer the journalist’s questions and then bridge back to your key messages to best support your personal brand and/or your organization.

A few examples of bridging phrases are:

1. I don’t know about that, but what I can tell you is,

2. It’s important to understand,

3. I’d like to add,

4. However,

5. In fact,

You’ll notice that politicians are often masters at the art of bridging. They’ll answer the question (or sometimes dodge it) and go right into what they want to say. This technique helps you keep control of the interview and relay your key messages in a conversational and natural way.

Bridging is one of many nuances to participating in media interviews. With practice and media training, you’ll feel more comfortable and confidant relaying your key messages and what you want to say during interviews.