Our discussions surrounding positionality have been great and allowed me to have a lot of self reflection. Following Tova O’Brien’s recent interview with Jami-Lee Ross and the large positive reception it’s had, my thoughts turned to positionality within the media. In the interview she confronts him about spreading misinformation regarding Covid-19. I was appalled to see O’Brien’s interview described as ‘feral’. Which frankly would not have been said if a man had interviewed in the same style. With the upcoming US election, there have been many discussions of fake news, bias in the media, and how Trump has been treated unfairly.
I looked at the recent 60 Minutes interview of Trump. Up to the release of the interview, Trump was making multiple comments and allegations through social media about how the interview was unfair. He even cut the interview short, with an abrupt departure. The 60 Minutes interview has received a lot of backlash, and Lesley Stahl the interviewer, has received death threats.
Going into watching the interview, I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt. But watching the video, such claims seemed insufficient. Even considering factors such as the interview’s editing, I struggled to see what was so wrong with this interview. Stahl’s questions seemed fair to me, and he was not drastically misquoted or misrepresented. I couldn’t help but wonder, what if he had been interviewed by Tova O’Brien?
It’s interesting to compare these two interviews, because of the similarities in the interviewer’s style, and the difference in the interviewee’s reactions, as well as mixed general public reception. In my opinion both interviews were fair, reasonable and unbiased, with the interviewers simply trying to hold each interviewee accountable for their actions.
There are a bunch of other factors which could be considered when comparing these interviews. I guess a lot of it could come down to positionality; predominately the difference in social position and power between Trump and Ross. Trump is currently President of the USA, and running to be reelected. In contrast, O’Brien interviewed post election, following Ross’ loss of a seat in parliament. It’s disheartening, and a bit of a reality check, for me to see the difference in reaction to these interviews. To ask how much of it comes down to the position of power held by the interviewee.
In summary, the importance of having unbiased media coverage which asks the hard questions is becoming increasingly important to me. How can we make Tova O’Brien’s firm and no nonsense approach to interviews an industry standard? How may we access and disseminate information regardless of individuals’ and corporations’ power or position, and hold them accountable?
