"Whatever you are interviewing about, be curious … Ask the questions with the full curiosity of: I don’t know this, can you teach me?" - Siobhon Eacott 

Welcome to Winter Shorts, a bonus series by The SciComm Collective that hopes to keep you entertained during the first weeks of winter. We will explore the art of podcasting with professionals and former students of UWA’s Science Presentations unit, so kick back, enjoy a hot beverage and listen in!

Today, Ximena sits down with Dr Heather Bray and Siobhon Eacott to talk about their experiences preparing for and conducting interviews. Heather shares insights from her time working on live radio and Siobhon reflects on the process of recording podcasts in a discipline she was initially unfamiliar with. They discuss practical strategies for keeping conversations flowing smoothly, comparing a good interview to a tennis match where the dialogue is constantly moving back and forth. This episode originates from one of The SciComm Collective’s most recent workshops, designed to encourage students to step outside their comfort zones, try new things and explore the world of podcasting. 

"For practising [interviewing], there has to be something that makes it unfamiliar… your learning zone is out of your comfort zone… so you are practising to acquire that muscle memory." – Dr Heather Bray 

Episode links:

Check out Heather’s lecture on interviewing skills  

Find out more resources on reporting science from the Australian Science Media Centre  

Discover more interviewing skills in BBC Academy 

This episode was brought to you by:

Episode Host: Ximena Shaw 

Special Guests: Dr Heather Bray and Siobhon Eacott 

Producer: Ximena Shaw 

Audio editor: Matthew Gill 

Show notes by: Ximena Shaw