Standard listening in journalism is often transactional. We listen just long enough to get the information we need, sometimes only pantomiming the act as we reload our verbal guns with the next question. This approach can leave sources feeling brushed aside or used, and it blinds us to what isn’t expressed in words.
Why Deep Listening Could Transform Your Journalism
Deep Listening is transformational. It means acknowledging a speaker’s humanity, granting them respect and empathetic space so they can ignite fresh thinking. You listen openly, not to confirm your own ideas, but to truly learn about your interviewee. Through this process, the person you’re listening to can crystallise their ideas and feel witnessed, often sharing a more authentic story. Whether or not you agree, you come to understand them far more profoundly and can tell a more powerful story.
Why Does Deep Listening Matter in Journalism?
Stories are the currency of journalism. The way we show up-our manner, curiosity, and empathy-has a huge impact on the authenticity and depth of the stories our interviewees share. There’s a common assumption that journalists must remain detached, eliciting objective truth free from the influence of the relationship with the interviewee. While basic facts are essential, journalism is also about perspectives, opinions, and feelings. Our presence and intention shape what people are willing to share.
There’s a tension in using Deep Listening as a journalist: we arrive with a story to tell, a deadline to meet, and a need for specific information. But when we set aside our agenda, even temporarily, we can create space for more profound encounters. Reflecting back what we hear, in an iterative process, allows us to check facts and sentiments, and to give space for new understanding to emerge.
The Eight Steps of Deep Listening
Drawing on lessons from academic research, leaders, Indigenous communities, and those who listen in extreme environments, Deep Listening unfolds in eight steps, which I flesh out in my book:
- Create Space: Establish psychological safety and an environment where your source feels inspired to share.
- Listen to Yourself First: Recognise your own biases and internal distractions before engaging with others.
- Be Present: Cultivate a focused, open presence that transforms routine interviews into meaningful exchanges.
- Be Curious: Approach your source with genuine curiosity and empathy, letting go of preconceptions, what you think you already know.
- Hold the Gaze: Use non-verbal cues and attentive body language to signal that you are truly listening.
- Hold the Silence: Embrace pauses, allowing your interviewee space to reflect and share more deeply.
- Reflect Back: summarise the very heart of what you’ve heard, including their emotions and the notes between the words to check your understanding and invite clarification.
- Go Deeper: Explore the underlying narratives, needs, and values that shape your source’s perspective.
The Challenge-and the Opportunity
Deep Listening isn’t easy. Our experiences and preconceptions shape what we can and cannot hear. As journalists, we’re often distracted by deadlines, pre-formed narratives, and the pressure to secure the perfect sound bite. But when we surrender our agenda and focus on reflecting our interviewee’s meaning, we invite deeper, more authentic stories.
I once interviewed Ethiopia’s President Meles Zenawi, determined to challenge him on human rights abuses. My questions were masks for my desire to confront, not to understand. As he became more defensive, he moved further and further away from my microphone. Then he stopped the interview. Early. Looking back, I regret not demonstrating genuine curiosity to understand his vision for ending poverty in this country, as well as holding him to account. Deep Listening doesn’t mean avoiding tough questions-it means being open to the full complexity of your interviewee’s experience.
Emily Kasriel’s book Deep Listening: Transform your relationships with Family Friends and Foes is published by HarperCollins internationally 22 May and in the US and Canada 24 June.
You can follow Emily Kasriel on LinkedIn. More articles about Deep Listening on her website EmilyKasriel.com