How 30p Lee is proving costly

Immigration Minister Michael Tomlinson today proved that no amount of preparation or media training is too much to guarantee a gaffe-free broadcast interview.

The Minister became the latest in an unhappy band of politicians, including Diane Abbott, Tory Mayoral hopeful Susan Hall, and former Green Party Leader Natalie Bennett, to have come unstuck under the withering inquisition of LBC’s Nick Ferrari.

In Tomlinson’s case his downfall was his repeated refusal to answer questions over Lee Anderson’s recent comments about Sadiq Khan, and whether the Tory whip had? been withdrawn because he was being Islamophobic.

Nick Ferrari has rightfully earned a reputation as a radio rottweiler, so it's wise for politicians – and their media advisers – to prepare well, and to treat this kind of interview with the greatest of respect.

So what can we learn from his experience?

Answer the question

The ultimate reason Ferrari lost patience with his subject and terminated the interview early – was Tomlinson’s repeated refusal to answer a direct question. In media training you’re coached to ‘stay on message’, but that doesn’t mean repeating it ad infinitem, and certainly not to the point of rudeness. When the same question has been asked multiple times, that should be a clue that the interviewer isn’t satisfied with the answer and it's time to change tack.

Making your message clear

What is clear is that the Party’s message on Anderson is anything but clear. While the minister was prepared to say Anderson's behaviour towards Sadiq Khan was “wrong” – three times in fact – he refused to be drawn on why it was wrong; i.e. whether or not it was Islamophobic.? The only inference to be drawn from this obfuscation was that Tomlinson knew the answer but for whatever reason, wouldn’t say so. If the Party wasn’t prepared to call him out for Islamophobia then they needed a very clear reason as to why.

Know your enemy

Before embarking on any interview, one of the first things you do is to research your interviewer, understand their M.O., and, in the case of a formidable opponent like Ferrari, prepare for the worst. That means ensuring you’re on top of your facts, having a firm grasp of your brief and having answers ready to deal with the most difficult of questions, as well as any difficult follow up salvos the interviewer might feel like lobbing in for good measure.

Perhaps there will be some in Central Office who have judged Tomlinson's appearance as more of a minor prang than a head on collision. Clearly, the Minister had been instructed not, under any circumstances, to accuse a party grandee of Islamophobia. He may have managed this, but at the expense of becoming the headline himself.