Paxman on interviewing, newsreading, politics and the BBC

The full Jeremy Paxman interview with me at the Frontline Club is here. It runs for 1 hour 25 minutes! Some soundbites if you can't get all the way through.

On newsreading: "I did have a period reading the news and it's not an occupation for an adult... I think it was Michael Buerk who described reading the news as "reading aloud"....It's not a satisfying or satisfactory occupation."

On interviewing: "In each case what you're trying to do is to get through this carapace that they all carry nowadays because anyone who occupies a role where they're likely to be interviewed... they've all been trained in how to deal with interviews. That may well involve them adopting quite a sophisticated level of not answering a question".

On politics: "I think there is a crisis of confidence in modern politics... The media must take some of the responsibility for that. Do they take all the responsibility for it? Not at all... I think it's to do with a number of things... [One reason] The party system requires politicians to reduce politics to idiotic binary choices."