It seems like 2016 is going to be the year of social media drama and it doesn’t look like ending anytime soon. While we are still recovering from the Tiwa and Teebillz marriage problem, another one has barged into our social consciousness.
I woke up to find Omawumi trending and I found that odd since she didn’t drop any new music this week. I did some digging and found this video on Youtube
I would imagine that the outfit that conducted the interview is a small one, and Omawumi was doing them a major favor by honoring their invitation. So it’s a bit surprising that they would ask some of those silly questions without first seeking Omawumi’s permission. As a small relatively unknown channel, you do not ambush the subjects of your interview with questions that have the potential to embarrass them without clearing with them first. This is what we call being professional, and if the interviewer had some basic media training, she would know this.
I am not saying it is because they are small that they have to ask, but courtesy demands it. This is why celebrities avoid doing interviews with small media outlets. In their small thinking, they are only looking at getting the scoop, they are not seeing the big picture. Even if for the sake of argument, you do not want your interview to seem patronizing, then you should have made it clear before the interview started and that you were going to ask the question. Omawumi may have as well said she didn’t want to answer such a question, but she would have at least had some justification for asking such a question.
She did not provide any proof of the allegation beyond rumors and conjecture, and as a professional, you cannot ask questions based on rumors without clearing with the subject first. If the media outfit behind this interview was sincere, they would have edited out the part where the offensive question was asked and issued an apology. But in their struggle to get YouTube advertising money, they are thinking small. Unless the owner of the outfit is an influential person in the media, I do not see them getting any more interviews from A-List celebrities.
For those of you social climbing, wannabe journalists, this is how you conduct an interview:
Prepare a profile of your subject and structure your interview.
Put together a list of likely questions or the areas you are going to touch and stick to it.
Let the subject know beforehand the reasons for the interview and the areas you are going to touch. This is an interview, not an ambush or a public shaming.
Let the subject do the talking and ask follow-up questions when necessary.
If the subject opens the door, then you can take advantage of it.
Make sure you display professionalism from start to finish.
When the “Oga At The Top” video went viral, it wasn’t because the media outfit planned to embarass the subject, it just happened.
I think Omawumi was more than patient because she was trying to help them, but patience has its limits. Moreover if she respected Omawumi as much as she claimed, she would have put some respeck on it
