Before I start I want you to know that I am not endorsing or denouncing gold as an investment.  Thankfully, that’s not my line of work.  What I want to point out is how being prepared for an interview can really pay off, or at least avoid a public relations disaster.

In this piece ABC new attempts to expose the misdeeds of the gold selling business, and singles out industry leader, Goldline in particular.  The investigative reporter, Brian Ross, points out possible nefarious activity by gold sellers then uses commentary from a democratic congressman and a liberal watchdog group in support of his argument against Goldline, while the words, “Glenn Beck Endorses Company,” runs in the graphic snipe at the bottom of the screen throughout most of the piece.  Ross also mentions the other conservative commentators who endorse Goldline.  This is a poor journalistic effort in which their thesis seems to be that if liberals don’t like it but the Fox News crowd does, then it must be bad.  Did they bother to interview a real expert?  A professor? A seasoned commodities trader?   A financial advisor? Um, no.

Now, it should have been clear to the folks at Goldline that ABC News was looking for that “gotcha moment.”   When invited to be interviewed they could have anticipated that the set up piece (Ross’s report) and interview questions would be accusatory, and it would have been very easy to decline the request.  But they did not.  This was a risky move.  While I don’t know whether Goldline Executive Vice President Scott Carter is a prince among men or a complete shyster, I do know is that he did a great job with this interview.  Carter expected the questions he received and had answers well enough prepared to seem like he was answering them off-the-cuff.  He stayed on message and used short, simple speech.  He remained positive and enthusiastic, never saying “no comment.”  He even had his “Three Quick Points,” that seemed to be designed to lead into a story or two, but by that time George Stephanopoulos had to cut him off to go to a break.

Is it possible that Carter came off a bit too slick, and that some viewers don’t trust him or his industry?  Probably, but I’d bet those folks either lean to the left politically, or don’t plan on buying gold anyway.  Not a big deal for Carter because that’s not his audience, and I will say with some certainty that he got through to his intended audience in a very positive way.
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