There are many talk shows that we know about. We've seen many of these clips, whether it be David Letterman, Jon Stewart, or more recent hosts like Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Fallon. Chances are we haven't developed a conventional love for anyone talk show host. We know them and have watched clips, but haven't really dug deeper unless a controversy was high, such as with Ellen DeGeneres. I am much the same, but today I embarked on an accidental journey to discover a host that I've already gotten a love for, being Conan O'Brien. I was walking around listening to the Hot One's episode that was released with him as a guest and already was captivated by his wit and conversational style, leading me to watch many videos on what separates good talk show hosts from bad ones. So let's talk about talk shows and why they're so useful for us to listen to.

Holding Conversations and Asking Questions

Many of the most popular segments of talk shows have to do with the interviews. Interviewing actors and actresses, musicians, and even social media influencers, interviews have been a staple in the talk show business. There's a lot to learn from these segments, too. When we compare talk show hosts, we can also get insight into questioning and how they hold a conversation, and in many cases, it's a deciding factor between what makes a talk show host the best or the worst. So let's break down this aspect with examples.

Interviews: 

In 2007, Conan O'Brien would interview Emma Watson at a time when "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" was releasing. Many people have commented about this specific interview, but I'd also like to highlight what has made it timeless. At the start of the segment, Emma Watson is on the edge of her seat, nervous. However, by the end of the segment, Emma Watson has gotten more relaxed and confident during the conversation. It's this specialty that certain talk show hosts have to help their guests ease into the feeling, many times we don't see today. Conan O'Brien specifically starts the interview off by asking simpler questions and creating a bond with them to make them more comfortable, as noticeable in his 2013 interview with actress Rooney Mara. If we compare this to other talk show hosts we see today, such as Jimmy Fallon, we'll notice that the interview feels a lot more ingenuine. Fallon has been on record interrupting guests, such as in an old interview with Taylor Swift, and we all know those comments about how his laughs always seem too extravagant for the situations at hand.

We can learn and apply a lot of these aspects to our own lives too. A deep root of what makes an interview special is having both parties feel comfortable and free to share as much as they'd like. This is what great talk show hosts do. There's an art form in making matching energy and finding similarities with your conversing partner which can then act as a catalyst to other topics. It's a way of connecting with anyone, no matter how much you've known them in the past, which can create lasting friendships and relationships. 

Asking Questions: 

Additionally, we have to focus on question-asking too. While not being a talk show, a great example is Sean Evans on Hot Ones. If you've watched an episode before, or even if you haven't, you've probably known of Sean Evans's great questions that often have many guests thinking about answers or responding with deep replies. I believe a large aspect of this is research. Sean Evans isn't going into an interview with only background information of who's going to be on the show, he dives deeper into certain critical points of their career to ask on, often leaving the audience with a lot to take home too. 

I believe asking good questions is a crucial skill going into the future. So many relationships are heightened through personal and thoughtful questions, and a large part of us learning and growing as individuals is part of learning from others. However, most of the people we meet aren't celebrities that we can look up information on. "Research" is hard on a day-to-day basis. However, the school also has a lot of great ways to get information on someone before you talk to them. See what clubs they're a part of, what teams they play on, and even what they repost on their social media can all be great gateways to a deeper friendship. Asking on these aspects of their life that many wouldn't bring up are ways to separate yourself from those around you, making yourself a better question-asking and someone that people want to talk to more. 

Even considering our deeper friendships, a large part of what makes them so good is how we know a lot about them. We know what they do after school, how they spend their time, and what they like and dislike. Yet, even people we're strangers with we can find this information about. We're living in a world where people are constantly sharing things that pique their interest. We don't have to look high and low for what anyone is interested in, and they might even be wearing something on them that is a great showing of their liking too. In talk show terms, it's what separates an interview from being cold, distant, and awkward; into something that looks like a conversation between two close friends or people who seem to click instantly.

Practice

There's so much that goes into conversing and we only covered two aspects. We didn't even look into body language, eye contact, what to do if there's more than one person, and even the other aspects of talk shows like the skits. But, we can focus on those another day, when we can dedicate more time to focusing on them. However, I'd like to leave this post with a message of practice. Although the skills we outlined today might seem simple, they take time to hone and get really good at. Conan O'Brien started his talk show with many negative reviews criticizing him but has now gone down as one of the greatest talk show hosts of all time. Just like him, we have to continue learning through the hard times so that we can relish and be admired in the good times. We don't even need to like conversing to be the best at these skills. Yes, Conan genuinely loves talking to people, but even Ellen DeGeneres has won multiple awards while being rude to those behind the scenes. Just keep working on what we can, and we'll find success eventually.