The issue we have with Hancock’s half hour

Specifically, he spoke about how politicians evade questions and, in the words of host Richard Madeley “answer a question that hasn’t been asked”.

Here’s what he said:

“I’ve been trained in that technique for years and years. Endless practice and media training.

“You’re asked impossible questions.

“People feel the pressure not to answer and feel the pressure that if they say what they really think, there will be a headline online.

“I think all of that is rubbish. And the reason I talked about the pivot in I’m A Celebrity is because I want to get away from all that.

“I definitely think just answering the question is a far better way of doing it. I really believe that in my heart.

“And one of the things that has been a release since no longer being in Government is just being able to answer the question.”

It’s great he now sees answering questions to be the best approach.

But the question must be, who is advising politicians to answer questions in this way? Because it certainly isn’t us.

When we discuss bridging with our delegates - the technique Mr Hancock refers to as ‘the pivot’ – we stress that the most crucial part is answering the question.

You should only look to steer the conversation to what you want to discuss when you have done that.

It is not bridging when a politician ignores the question and answers what they would rather be asked. It is being evasive.

A recent example of this we highlighted in our media training blog, was provided by Rishi Sunak.

Asked by Laura Kuenssberg on BBC’s Sunday whether he was registered with a private GP, he said: “My dad was a doctor. I grew up in an NHS family.

When the journalist interrupted that scripted response and asked the question again, he said: “As a general policy, I wouldn’t ever talk about me or my family’s healthcare situation. It is not really relevant. What is relevant is the difference I can make to the country.”

Ms Kuenssberg did try a third time but got no further. The Prime Minister said: “The real issue is, are we making sure there is high-quality healthcare available for the country?

“When it comes to the private sector in general, we should be making use of the independent sector. I don’t have any problem with that whatsoever.”

If you’ve read – or listened to – that blog, you’ll know this evasiveness became the main talking point from the interview and generated damning headlines.

“Why won’t you tell us whether or not you use private healthcare?” asks #BBCLauraK

PM Rishi Sunak says he won’t answer questions about his healthcare and it is a “distraction from the things that really matter” https://t.co/iUlJw66iPo pic.twitter.com/KPx1Kr5qPY

— BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) January 8, 2023

A few days later, he said: "I am registered with an NHS GP, I have used independent healthcare in the past” - not so hard after all.

Intriguingly, Mr Hancock seems to believe journalists are partly to blame for politicians trying to avoid difficult questions.

Having accused Piers Morgan – a former Good Morning Britain host – of “shouting monologues at me for 20 minutes” when he was interviewed as a member of the Government, he went into a little more detail in response to a question from Kate Garraway.

Matt Hancock, during a toe-curling interview (great job Susanna & Richard) on @GMB just whined it was ‘ridiculous’ that I held him to tough vigorous account during the pandemic. If I’d known what a lying rule-breaking toad he really was, I’d have gone much harder.

— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) January 31, 2023

“In the heat of the pandemic, that’s one of the times when I was most able to just answer the question,” he said.

“But there is a two-way street here. The questions in the heat of the pandemic were much more respectful, trying to get information.

“Sometimes, when the questions are just a one-way monologue, that’s when the politician becomes defensive.

“So, there is a dance here. And it means politicians are not seen as human beings. We are seen as tough nuts.”

Hmmm. I would argue evading questions makes someone look more cowardly than tough.

But the crucial point here is that journalists, whether or not they have the profile of Mr Morgan, will ask tough questions. It is their job to probe and hold people to account. And not just attain a bit more information about whatever the politician wants to discuss.

Let’s not forget that it is because journalists hold the powerful to account that Nadhim Zahawi lost his job this weekend.

All spokespeople should expect to face uncomfortable questions – not just politicians.

And they should find a way of answering them that doesn’t involve avoiding the questions or showing frustration.

Despite his “endless” media training, Mr Hancock needs to work on that last part. During an examination of whether his affair broke rules or guidelines he said, “I’ve been through that endlessly”.

'The guidelines were in place and I accept that I broke the guidelines. But I didn't break the law.' @MattHancock @susannareid100 questions the former Health Secretary on whether he broke the law when he breached Covid rules. pic.twitter.com/QlbO3knUWZ

— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) January 31, 2023

Excellent interviewing of Matt Hancock from @susannareid100 on GMB, during which you can see a fatigued Hancock let the mask slip in saying he’s “been through this endlessly”. In other words, he’s tired of having to defend himself constantly and just wants ‘a little forgiveness’.

— Liam O'Dell (@LiamODellUK) January 31, 2023

So, how would we advise spokespeople to answer tough questions?

Here are some top tips from our media training:

Preparation

You can often anticipate difficult and awkward questions. Spend some of your media interview preparation time considering potentially awkward questions. It might be about something your organisation has previously been in the news for. It might be a wider question about an issue impacting your sector or industry. It could be about something topical, such as the cost-of-living crisis or Brexit implications. The good news is you are unlikely to face as many tricky questions as a politician.

Plan

Once you’ve thought about the difficult questions, plan how to answer them. Is it a topic you want to address? If it is, how can you answer it without it becoming the focus of the interview? If not, how can you answer it before using the bridging technique to try to take control of the conversation?

Practice

Bridging skills can get a little rusty if you haven’t used them for a while. Get a colleague or family member to ask some of the difficult questions you’ve anticipated and use the bridging technique in your response.

Composure

Stay calm. Don’t show any frustration at the questions. Not only are you more likely to retain the audience's sympathy, but showing frustration, annoyance, aggression and insulting the journalist ensures an interview is memorable for the wrong reasons.

Learn

Research the bridging technique from a trusted source (like us) and don’t listen to any media trainers that tell you to ignore or dodge journalist’s questions.

It’s also worth highlighting that few spokespeople will be subject to an interview that lasts as long as this.

A live TV interview is typically four or five minutes. One on the radio is likely to be little more than two minutes.

Perhaps Mr Hancock’s Good Morning Britain appearance was half an hour too long.

Media First are media and communications training specialists with more than 35 years of experience. We have a team of trainers, each with decades of experience working as journalists, presenters, communications coaches and media trainers. 

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