How To Get Americans To Talk To You About Their Politics

Getting on the road is the best part of being a reporter - but not everybody wants to chat. There certainly is a method to getting people to air their views, writes Andrew Buncombe

- Andrew Buncombe

In these contentious times, when politics and political discourse often feel hot and angry, it is more important than ever for reporters to speak to people directly, and hear what they have to say.

Earlier this month, as temperatures were soaring, I found myself in the towns of Moses Lake and Yakima to find out what people thought of the rival candidates who were battling it out in a primary race for Washington's fourth congressional district.

The race had generated national interest because incumbent Dan Newhouse was one of 10 Republicans who had voted for Donald Trump's impeachment, and Trump had endorsed a former police officer, Loren Culp, to take him on. There was also a Democrat, Doug White, who hoped to flip the seat blue for the first time since 1992.

I'd interviewed White and spoken with Culp on the phone. Newhouse, who would and has progressed to the general election in November, did not respond to multiple requests. But I wanted to speak to potential voters. The only trouble was that the day I planned to travel to the area coincided with a brutal heatwave when temperatures were set to hit 45C.