Media Training Worldwide

TV Needs Action And Words

TV is a visual medium so it is important that you look good, move well and gesture appropriately. You’ve go to walk the talk without actually moving your legs. However, you must be aware of the possibility that when you are interviewed on TV, especially live TV, there is the chance that the director will show video (B-roll) instead of your face and body when you are talking.

Why is this relevant? Because you can’t make a point by grabbing the host’s arm or pointing to a spot on your own body if the people at home are watching video of something else and only hearing your voice. Your message might get lost.

Recently, I was on a national TV news program critiquing a politician’s speech. I grabbed the host’s arm to simulate a point about how the politician had grabbed another foreign leader’s arm. But nobody at home saw me because the director had cut to footage of the actual politician we were discussing. In hindsight, I should have been more careful to describe exactly what I was doing in addition to grabbing the host’s arm. Instead, I said, “If I grab your arm like this.” That didn’t make sense to viewers at home because they couldn’t see what I was talking about when I said “like this.”

Fortunately, the points I was making still came through. But whenever you are a guest on a live TV show (or a live-to-tape program), you should be careful to discuss your points in such a way that people can understand you even if they can’t see you. However, this doesn’t mean you should become motionless or not try to communicate visually. It just means that you need to be highly expressive with your words AND your actions.