Press Release: 02 Jan 2007

The wrong guy interview story Interviews under pressure, preparation, thinking on your feet, communications.)

This is a true story. It concerned Guy Goma, a lovely cuddly business graduate from the Congo, who on 8th May 2006 attended the BBC building in West London for an interview for an IT job. At the same time, the BBC News 24 TV channel was expecting a Guy Kewney, editor of the website Newsireless.net for a live 10.30 am studio interview about the Apple court case judgement. (Apples Corps, owned by surviving Beatles McCartney and Starr, lost their case against Apple Computers, in which they sought to prevent the Apple name being used in relations to iTunes music downloads.)

Due to failed communications, entirely the BBC's fault (both Guys were blameless in this), the BBC News 24 staff grabbed the wrong Guy (waiting in a different reception to Guy Kewney). Who, being an unassuming, foreign and extremely polite fellow, dutifully took his place and in the studio, and after declining make-up (really), was introduced on live TV to viewers as Guy Kewney, editor of the technology website 'Newswireless', and then asked three questions by the BBC News 24 business presenter Karen Bowerman about the Apple judgements and its implications for internet music downloading.

Meanwhile the real Guy Kewney sat and watched 'himself' on the monitor in the BBC reception. See the interview.

What's so utterly fascinating about this, is:

Guy Goma initially expresses surprise about the interview situation, but, largely due to his broken English and heavy French accent the interviewer interprets and leads Mr Goma's response to mean that he is surprised about the court judgement.

If you listen carefully, Guy Goma does actually mention his 'interview' in his first answer. See the transcript below. However the pressure of the situation is too great and he has little option other than to play out the role that the facts have created for him.

He actually does quite well, given that he knows little about the subject.

Subsequent media reports that Guy Goma was a taxi driver are false - he's a business graduate. He later attended his IT job interview but regrettably was unsuccessful. You can read what Guy Kewney thought of it all on him own blog at www.newswireless.net (there are several entries - read them all to see the full picture).

The wrong guy interview transcript

Karen Bowerman: Well, Guy Kewney is editor of the technology website Newswireless.

[Camera switches to Guy Goma's face, portraying a mixture of shock, disbelief and impending disaster.]

KB: Hello, Good morning to you.

Guy Goma: Good morning.

KB: Were you surprised by this verdict today?

GG: I am very surprised to see .. this verdit, to come on me because I was not expecting that. When I came they told me something else and I am coming. Got an interview -[another word, impossible to discern]- a big surprise anyway.

KB: A big surprise, yes, yes. [seeming a little anxious]

GG: Exactly. [growing in confidence]

KB: With regard to the costs involved do you think now more people with be downloading online?

GG: Actually, if you go everywhere you are gonna see a lot of people downloading to internet and the website everything they want. But I think, is much better for development and to empower people what they want and to get on the easy way and so faster if they are looking for.

KB: This does really seem the way the music industry's progressing now, that people want to go onto the website and download music.

GG: Exactly. You can go everywhere on the cyber café and you can take [maybe 'check'?], you can go easy. It's going to be very easy way for everyone to get something to the internet.

KB: Thank you [actually sounds more like 'Thanks Kewney' - as if Ms Bowerman was a little distracted, no wonder]. Thanks very much indeed.

Lessons learned:

Good clear communications are essential when managing any sort of interview.

Pressure situations can easily lead people (especially interviewees) to give false impressions, which are not help to anyone.

The behaviours demonstrated in this incident illustrate the power of suggestion, the point is that all communications involve a hell of a lot more than just words.

The power of the media to interpret just about anything for their own journalistic purposes should nev er be under-estimated! Inject as much clarity and control as you can.