Entries by Eric Dixon

When worlds collide: personal questions in public interviews

Being asked questions on TV or radio is daunting. You’re on show, after all, with an audience witnessing every factual inaccuracy, lack of knowledge, or inability to answer. The problem is exacerbated when your interviewer introduces something which is usually kept private into the mix. That’s when public and personal worlds collide; a combination of […]

Speaking human is a must-have skill

“We need people who speak human”. So said a Labour Party insider, following the party’s defeat in Hartlepool last week. Whatever your thoughts about the successes and failures of the various political parties in the UK elections over the past few days, it’s interesting that the need to communicate naturally with your audience, has once […]

Super League Apology and Why Sorry is the Hardest Word

‘Sorry’, as Elton John was keen to remind us in 1976, ‘seems to be the hardest word’. And if it’s difficult enough to utter privately, it is, perhaps, even more challenging to say in public. But that’s precisely what the American owner of Liverpool Football Club John Henry did last week, in the furore over […]

Piers Morgan should know better: walking off set is never good

Piers Morgan is irascible, dogmatic and for me highly entertaining. He of all people knows that media interviews are a sometimes uncomfortable blend of entertainment and information, often generating more heat than light.  And for a hapless interviewee, the pressure occasionally gets too much. But tempting though it might be, storming out of a TV […]

Perfect Pitching: My 7 Top Tips

Perfect pitching requires bringing together a lot of elements. It is more than just a presentation – but is never just about the hard sell. We coach people and teams to give great pitches and there are a few things we always look out for. 1. Perfect Pitching Starts with Questions To do a great […]

Not answering the question is not the way to do it

Not answering the question in a media interview is never a good idea and can always be spotted a mile off. Delegates arriving through the doors of The Media Coach are sometimes under the impression that we are there to teach them how to avoid answering questions they find difficult or awkward to answer. The […]

Crisis management: that’s the way to do it!

In my last blog for The Media Coach, I wrote about the importance of facing the media during times of crisis. In that article, I credited former UKIP leader Henry Bolton for agreeing to take part in interviews with journalists after the revelation of racist texts made by his new girlfriend but criticised his lack […]

Political gaffes: Don’t show your briefs

Don’t show your briefs, Jeremy! The Health Secretary’s recent gaffe highlights the importance of preparing briefing documents but not sharing them with the world! What is it with Government ministers and briefing papers? Why is it on the (often short) walk between Number 10 and ministerial car, or Government department and meeting venue, they let the […]

Crisis Comms: How to say sorry

Crisis Comms should include a basic tenet: know when to say sorry. “Sorry seems to be the hardest word” sang Elton John back in 1976. And in the world of corporate relations, it would appear to be something company bosses still struggle to say, even when reacting to an obvious and recognised mistake. Crisis Comms: […]