What litigators and broadcast journalists have in common

• Author: Scott Arnold
• Pages: 351-355

351

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SCOT T ARNOLD

hether you’re standing in front of a judge, 12 jurors

or the business end of a TV camera, you’re working to com-

municate in the most eective way possible. Regardless of

whether your viewers are in the same room or in another country, the best

way to make your points involves doing a lot of the same things, including

speaking in a conversational way, simplifying and bottom-lining things as

much as you reasonably can, recognizing and addressing what the crux

of the issue actually is, and putting yourself in the shoes of those who are

listening to you.

Before becoming a lawyer who spends most of my days on my feet in

court, I spent nearly a decade as a TV news reporter covering everything

from crime to politics to groundhog activity on February 2. In both lines

of work, I’ve also had a front row seat to watch others on the job and have

seen the full quality-range of advocacy and oral communication– from

the masterful to the gruesome.

In my experience, the most eective litigators and most eective broadcast

journalists have a number of qualities in common. Here are a few of them.

THEY SPE AK THE WAY PEOPLE ACTUALLY SPEAK

“Ocer Chan, did you have occasion to make observations with respect to the

accused’s attire while conducting the initial stages of your surveillance on the