Student Radio Association

In February I heard that Hilary Benn, Secretary of State for Environment was visiting the University as a guest of the Labour club. This was the same week that Mr Binyam Mohamed's case was thrown out of the high court on the grounds of national security.As an aspirant broadcast journalist, I read the newspapers every day. I heard the story of Mr Mohamed and wondered what would happen. There was a statement by the Foreign Secretary, there were newspaper columns opining on torture in Guantanamo Bay, and Mr Mohamed’s legal team publicised his allegations against the British Government. Mr Mohamed claimed that he had been captured, tortured with the help of MI6 and transported to Guantanamo Bay where he remained held without charge and under duress.I asked the University Labour Club member who organised the talk whether I could interview the Secretary of State. He informed me that it was unlikely I would be allowed but he promised to ask on my behalf. An hour before the talk, I was informed that the minister would be arriving early and that he would speak to student journalists who had requested interviews. I set about hunting for articles I had read about Mr Mohamed earlier in the week and planned a few lines of questioning. Rather than putting set questions to the minister, I thought it best if I listened to his answers and pushed him on them. The Secretary of State had voted for the Iraq War and was a longstanding Cabinet member. Binyam Mohamed’s case seemed a significant marker of Britain’s relationship with the United States. I wanted to conduct an interview that would pin down both his and the Government’s position.I started by ascertaining the Government’s position on torture. After this, I questioned more broadly and allowed the interview to develop. When answers were unclear, I would continue with the same line of questioning and keep pushing. Much of the interview required trying to unpick evasive answers. I thought it important to remain polite and patient throughout but to continue questioning solely about Mr Mohamed’s case.At the end of the interview my persistent questioning agitated the Chair of the Labour Society, who was acting as press secretary. He tried to call time on the interview, which can be heard on the submission. I pressed to ask the Secretary of State one more important question, which he did, and I finished the interview.I only discovered I had an interview an hour before and it made sourcing equipment difficult. The URY microphone had been missing following a week of live coverage of a ‘Battle of the Bands’ competition. I borrowed a dictaphone from student newspaper reporter.This made the recording poor quality. I spent that weekend improving the sound quality and removing crackles and background noise. I also removed some stammers and long pauses to make the interview flow better.The full interview was first broadcast on The Josh and Russell Review, a politics and current affairs show that I co-present and produce on University Radio York.There had not been any in depth interviews on Mr Mohamed’s case given by Cabinet members. Therefore I decided to send the interview out to newspapers, radio stations, and blogs. It was first posted on Iain Dale's Diary, a blog. The Yorkshire Post then published the interview on their website alongside their coverage of the issue. I was also invited on the BBC Daily Politics show to discuss the interview in a feature called ‘the art of the political interview’.