Let's Go "Off The Record"

Over the past 30 years or so, there's one question that I've been asked quite frequently:

"WHERE THE *?@~ DID YOU LEARN HOW TO DRIVE?!?!"

Generally speaking, that question is followed by a series of increasingly-creative hand gestures and a strong encouragement for me to stop swerving in between lanes.

For the record: I don't remember where (or if) I learned how to drive, and your looks of disdain aren't going to accomplish much beyond hurting my feelings. But another question that is more closely related to my experience as a former journalist and communications professional is, "What does off the record mean?" and how does that apply in the world of media.

There are a few possible definitions. According to the Cambridge dictionary, it refers to someone who says something but does not want it to be publicly reported. Other sources, such as the book Writing & Reporting for the Media, suggest it means that information spoken under these terms cannot be used at all.

So if you're being interviewed and you say something that is off the record, does that mean reporters can't use your comments?

Yes.... No..... Well, maybe.

The definition of "Off The Record" can mean different things to different news outlets, and may even differ from reporter?to reporter. Theoretically, these definitions should all result in a similar outcome, but you won't know for certain until you've gone over it with the person conducting an interview. There may be moral and legal considerations as well, depending on the information being discussed.

It's a murky area, one that some reporters prefer not to wade into for those very reasons.?

Let's say an executive or official spokesperson says something particularly controversial to a reporter over the course of an interview, and then adds ".... and that part of it was off the record" after spilling their?guts. Does that guarantee the comment won't get printed?

Probably not.

For one thing, they probably never came to terms with the reporter on how an off-record comment could be used, according to guidelines of their news outlet. And for another thing,?the spokesperson?made the request after the fact, which is ?- generally speaking - too late.

Let's say that the same person asks if something can be said off the record and the reporter agrees. Then they make the damning statement. Can they be guaranteed it won't ever see print?

The answer is still no.

Consider this: a reporter is?interviewing you to build a relationship, but more importantly, they're trying to tell?a story to their readers. If you hand-deliver them something surprising and not already in the public domain, chances are good?they won't just leave the story alone. Don't ever forget, reporters have a duty to report the news.?

Having said that... there are definitely levels to this practice, including speaking on background and "deep background." This may mean that the reporter has permission to dig deeper, including with other sources. And when the terms?of an off-record comment have been reached beforehand, the reporter may not be able to be able to directly report that "Source X said XYZ". But they may be able to write around that?to establish "Source X is doing X, Y and Z" without attributing that to you. And that still may not be an ideal outcome, depending on the interviewee's situation.

Whenever I brief or media-train spokespeople, I always give the same advice: don't say anything to a reporter that you wouldn't want to see published somewhere. That's not to suggest that the media won't honor your requests (they may very well be respectful of your Off The Record comment). But conversely, if you don't say the comment at all... well, there's virtually no chance it can come back to you later.

There are definitely other methods and tricks of the trade so that you can get confidential information to the press without saying it in an interview.... and just kind of hoping that you will receive immunity because you requested it. PR professionals, working closely with legal teams and other partners, can most likely offer you the right advice.

Not unlike how random drivers I share the road with usually offer me advice (usually while giving me a dirty look and shaking their fist in my direction).

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