how-ask-politicians-tough-questions How ...
How to Pose Good Questions to Politicians and Political Leaders
Choose an area with which you are familiar -
Or research the issue until you understand it
-
Seek reputable and neutral (as much as possible) sources of information
Make sure that the topic is applicable to the person being asked the question
Research the politician’s position -
Look through policy papers, interviews, newspaper articles, etc.
Look for: -
Flaws, lies or misleading statements
-
False dichotomies/associations/choices (e.g., illegal immigrant = felon/citizen=law-abiding; Muslim=terrorist/Christian=family values; in favor of going to war = patriotism; pro-life = antiabortion)
-
What is omitted from the statement
Use the information to craft a question that is forceful and designed to reveal flaws -
Politicians usually get to state their positions without facing a contrary argument
-
Provide the contrary argument and force the politicians to defend their policies and proposals
-
Avoid asking for a position on something; the response will likely be a stock speech
-
Anticipate answers and make it difficult to answer a question with a stock speech or meaningless blather
Be polite, but adversarial -
An angry tone is not necessary to ask a tough question; friendliness may even throw a politician off- guard
-
Within reason, be passive aggressive, if appropriate: “You said [Position A}. But, I cannot understand how that would work considering [all these other, contrary things]. Is there any way you could explain your position on [Position A], given [all these other, contrary things]?”
Understand the politician’s strengths and weaknesses
Get to the point – use your time wisely
Do not rant – you will get a “I’ll look into it and get back to you response”
Be concise and understandable but specific
-
Specifics, like dates, citations, etc. can be provided on accompanying material (have supplemental information ready to use as a reference or a prop)
-
Retain any information necessary for the question
-
Provide a topic sentence to grab attention, frame the question, or situate the question in a current event issue
Be prepared with follow-up questions
Source: http://24ahead.com/how-ask-politicians-tough-questions
Choose an area with which you are familiar -
Or research the issue until you understand it
-
Seek reputable and neutral (as much as possible) sources of information
Make sure that the topic is applicable to the person being asked the question
Research the politician’s position -
Look through policy papers, interviews, newspaper articles, etc.
Look for: -
Flaws, lies or misleading statements
-
False dichotomies/associations/choices (e.g., illegal immigrant = felon/citizen=law-abiding; Muslim=terrorist/Christian=family values; in favor of going to war = patriotism; pro-life = antiabortion)
-
What is omitted from the statement
Use the information to craft a question that is forceful and designed to reveal flaws -
Politicians usually get to state their positions without facing a contrary argument
-
Provide the contrary argument and force the politicians to defend their policies and proposals
-
Avoid asking for a position on something; the response will likely be a stock speech
-
Anticipate answers and make it difficult to answer a question with a stock speech or meaningless blather
Be polite, but adversarial -
An angry tone is not necessary to ask a tough question; friendliness may even throw a politician off- guard
-
Within reason, be passive aggressive, if appropriate: “You said [Position A}. But, I cannot understand how that would work considering [all these other, contrary things]. Is there any way you could explain your position on [Position A], given [all these other, contrary things]?”
Understand the politician’s strengths and weaknesses
Get to the point – use your time wisely
Do not rant – you will get a “I’ll look into it and get back to you response”
Be concise and understandable but specific
-
Specifics, like dates, citations, etc. can be provided on accompanying material (have supplemental information ready to use as a reference or a prop)
-
Retain any information necessary for the question
-
Provide a topic sentence to grab attention, frame the question, or situate the question in a current event issue
Be prepared with follow-up questions
Source: http://24ahead.com/how-ask-politicians-tough-questions
