As a journalist, I interview people on a regular basis. That's my job. Many are high profile, from different walks of life - explorers, actors, athletes, authors, businessmen, scientists.
Over my three decades of doing this, I've learned a thing or two about what and what not to do. Below are a few basic principles that apply to most all interviewees, especially celebrities. There are subsets of these, but the eight below are a good start.
(1) Do your research beforehand, both about the source and his or her area of expertise. But don't do too much. You certainly don't want to ask a naive question, the answer to which you should have known from the source's biography.
But, at the same time, you don't want to know too much, push the conversation into trivia that nobody understands or cares about. What you want is a smart question broad enough that the answer will interest and enlighten your audience, but one that is not too much inside baseball. (2) In the beginning of an interview, use a humble, folksy tone.
Convince the source that you are a regular person, not some self-important reporter. Also, if it's say, a Sen. John Glenn or Sir Edmund Hillary or Neil Armstrong, give the icon due respect.
He deserves it. (3) Never talk about yourself. I know when I first started, I'd try to impress sources with something cool I'd done in their area of expertise.
Bad idea. So what if I flew in the back of a fighter jet? My guest has been to the Moon. Further, when you butt in with your o.