Ask YC: Doing first TV appearance tonight. Advice?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=235406

by brandnewlow • 18 years ago

13 16 18 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

Just got a call from a local producer to appear on Chicago Tonight to discuss whether this is Chicago's "Shining Moment." (Obama, Olympics etc.). I am developing new news and commentary magazine for the city (not a traditional startup, I know) at WindyCitizen.com. Never been on TV before. Anyone done this sort of "expert" appearance before? I'm a little nervous and wondering how best to wedge in a pitch for my project.

edw519• 18 years ago

I've never done this either so I'm not a good one to suggest advice.

Why not ask the producer or the interviewer in advance? If I were them, I'd want to know if a guest was going to "wedge in a pitch". Rather than surprise them, get them to help you.

brandnewlow3• 18 years ago

I had a 20 minute pre-interview with one of the producers a little while ago. Went well.

Just got my hair cut. The lady at Great Clips wished me well. So I've got that going for me.

And I had my people pull up some fun facts in case I need to reach into the quiver for something good.

Time to get some clothes together. The producer said business casual.... but my wardrobe goes from casual straight to suits....let's see what I can turn up...

hugh• 18 years ago

Suit - Tie - Jacket = business casual. If I were you I'd just show up wearing the suit and lose the jacket and/or tie if they recommend it.

Also, no white shirts or finely-patterned ties, since those can look bad on camera. Come to think of it, take a spare change of clothes just in case.

daniel-cussen• 18 years ago

Maybe you could buy some clothes...I don't know.

aasarava• 18 years ago

The best reference to the magazine will be when they announce your title and affiliation (and possibly print the title/affiliation at the bottom of the screen), so make sure they know clearly that you're the "Editor of WindyCitizen.com" (or whatever) and that they spell it correctly.

Beyond that, the other chance you might get is when/if they shoot B-roll footage of you working at your computer. Make sure you've got your site loaded on the screen, with the logo clearly visible.

Finally, if there's a good (not-awkward) spot in the interview to mention a story that appeared on WindyCitizen.com, you could say something like, "Actually, we did a story on WindyCitizen.com just recently about that very thing and we found that...."

Remember, the not-awkward part is key. Sometimes you may just end up being a small part of the producer's vision for the story and your own project doesn't ever get mentioned. Don't worry about that too much. If you do a good job anyway and help out the producer, it's likely you'll start getting called back for other interviews (possibly even by other news organizations) and you'll start to build a reputation.

Good luck!

thorax• 18 years ago

Just remember, you're the expert. They're calling you there for your experience, so you don't have to be anything than yourself and share what you know and your thoughts.

It probably depends on content for a way to wedge in the pitch-- but I wish you lots of luck!

pavelludiq• 18 years ago

I havent been on TV, but i had to speak at audiences a few times and i guess its the same. With some of us its just natural. We just don't care and seem very confident. I don't know how to directly help you except to say that you shouldn't worry about anything and stay as cool as possible and concentrate on what you are doing. I don't know if it helps, but it's the best thing i can think of, there is really no secret in speaking to people, its a skill like any other, and some learn it easy and some learn it hard. So just take your mind off of the worries and concentrate on your job. Maybe in my case is my ability not to care if i make a fool of my self. I know its hard for most people, but not caring what others think to some extend gives people great confidence it the way they act. Its normal, stage fever is a natural break mechanism and overcoming it might be hard. Maybe if you think of your self as a successful person(Im on TV, that means im cool) you will act cool and calm. I don't know, i never thought of it seriously till this moment. Hope i didn't confuse you even more.

vaksel• 18 years ago

Are you an avid watcher of that program? If not, I suggest you take the time to watch the program a day or so before. This way you can prepare yourself for the interview style the show uses, and can see how they sign off on guests(i.e. you don't want to be seen doing something stupid as the camera zooms out).

pg• 18 years ago

Talk slowly and clearly.

rslonik• 18 years ago

Make some internal joke, so your friends will lol and all the other people won't understand. I did it, pretty cool. =D

thinkcomp• 18 years ago

1) Bring a jacket. I did a TV appearance and apparently when I get nervous, I get cold and start shivering.

2) Be prepared to fly blind. You might think that in a TV studio, you'd be able to see what you look like on TV. Not so! There's generally no loopback feed because there's often a satellite (so they say) delay, which can confuse you since you'd be watching yourself from a few seconds ago. It was really disconcerting for me not knowing what I looked like, but I guess you get used to it.

3) For West Coast people: refuse to do 7 AM East Coast talk shows. It means being awake at 2 AM to talk clearly and coherently at 4 AM, and it just doesn't work.

Good luck!

merrick33• 18 years ago

Answer questions when appropriate with at windycitizen.com we think/believe etc...

jraines• 18 years ago

Better:

"I started WindyCitizen.com to give people . . ."

"When I/we started WindyCitizen.com . . . but now . . ."

brandnewlow3• 18 years ago

Hey everyone! Just got back from taping. It went pretty well. I wore a blue suit (blue shirt, dark tie) and while I don't think I knocked it out of the park, I certainly did alright.

It was an 8 minute segment and I was on a panel with two guys significantly older than myself, a college prof. and a local comedian, both frequent guests on the program.

Right before we went on they told us to keep it light and fun, which we did more or less.

I got a plug from the announcer at the beginning and, I can't remember, but I think I worked in another mention later on. They said the URL would be on the screen with my name during my introduction.

My main goal was to get invited back. I see a lot of the same faces again and again....and a friend of mine is a producer there, which is how I got the call. So while I could have probably been wittier (though I think I did alright) I'm pleased with how it turned out and I made some contacts.

Now it'll be interesting to see the impact of going on the show on our site traffic, if any.

Ask YC: Doing first TV appearance tonight. Advice?

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