Public Speaking

Locate the Data You Need (^87)
techniques? Personal experiences with subjects such as preparing a budget or living with
diabetes increase the speaker’s credibility.
Interviews
If you don’t have experience with a topic, you can interview someone who does. Go
in person, use email, phone, or Skype to ask for information or get clarification about
confusing ideas. Or watch or read a transcript from a show—such as NBC’s Meet the
Press or CNN’s Reliable Sources—that regularly interviews guests. Experts know their
subjects because of their studies and occupations. I interviewed two expert librarians
when I wrote this chapter. Laypeople or peers have opinions and insights learned
through ordinary living. I interviewed several students for practical tips about their
research strategies.
Because most people have full schedules, keep the following interview tips in mind:
• Prepare in advance. Do research about the topic beforehand so you don’t waste time
going over basic information. In addition, learn about the persons and (in the case
of experts) the organizations they represent to better understand their perspectives.
Then write out questions to help you remember everything you want to ask and to
keep the interview on track. Give these questions to your interviewees beforehand—
especially if they are not native English speakers—so they have time to prepare
thoughtful answers.
• Listen carefully. During the interview, take notes and then read them back to the
interviewee, who can then make corrections or additions. Ask questions such as “Is
this what you mean?” or “Did I understand this correctly ... ?” If you plan to record
the interview, ask permission in advance, and place the recorder in full view.
• Aim to understand your topic from your interviewees’ perspective. If their ideas and actions
clash with yours, practice civility. Listen politely, and try to understand how they
came to their viewpoints. Remember that they did you a favor by agreeing to an
interview.
• Be time conscious. Schedule the interview at the other person’s convenience, not yours.
When you make the appointment, estimate how long it will take and then respect
expert people whose
knowledge is based on
research, experience, or
occupation
laypeople or peers ordinary
people whose knowledge
comes from everyday
experiences
TabLe 7.1
Library Resources Compared to Internet Sources
Library Materials Internet Materials
Monitored: knowledgeable people select and track
the material
Not Monitored: anyone can post anything, experts and
con artists alike
Reviewed: most materials undergo a systematic
editorial review process
Not reviewed: most materials lack a systematic review
process
Organized: holdings are systematically classified
(OPACs, Dewey Decimal System)
Unorganized: no system classifies content, even
Google changes algorithms
Non-commercial: materials are not chosen for
commercial reasons
Often commercial: factual information competes with
commercials and ads
Guidelines: librarians provide explicit guides for
evaluating materials
No standardized guidelines: No explicit guidelines to
evaluate the content
Limited amount: the number of documents, although
vast, has limits
Unlimited amount: billions of documents are available,
with more added daily
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