Thirty minutes.
That's how much time I had to interview Colin Powell. It may not sound like much, but plenty of journalists would kill for that much time with the Secretary of State.
I recently won a contest sponsored by the campus arm of Knight-Ridder/Tribune. Along with another student from Colorado State University, I went to Washington last week to talk with Powell and write a story for the wire service.
My background is mainly in features and entertainment writing. The extent of my political reporting involves little more than talking with city councilmen about funding for local theatre groups. But I've always been interested in diplomacy. I like to know how the world works, and how it keeps from tearing itself apart. Though I write the arts news, the international news is the first section I look at when I read the paper in the morning.
The assignment was tricky. As a journalist, I usually come up with my ideas first, then check out the sources to refine those ideas. In this case I got my source first, then had to come up with some ideas.
With only a half-hour to share with another reporter, I knew I couldn't dig in very deep or write an extensive profile. I decided almost from the beginning to avoid asking point blank about such issues as Iraq or the War on Terrorism for fear of getting stock answers echoing the administration's line.
I had plenty of questions in mind, but in reality I knew I'd be lucky if I got in more than five.
Ultimately I settled on student apathy toward foreign affairs as a topic. This was something I hadn't heard him discuss in the past, and I felt it was appropriate for a college audience.
My interview with Powell was scheduled for 11 a.m. Wednesday. Knight-Ridder reporter Warren Strobel and photographer Chuck Kennedy were our guides for the visit. Strobel has made trips to more than 80 countries (including four visits to Iraq), and Kennedy has photographed almost every important person in Washington (the afternoon I arrived, he had just returned from a meeting with Strom Thurmond).
The State Department sits on 22nd Street in Washington like a giant marble block with little ornamentation, surrounded by concrete barriers. Except for the seventh floor (where Powell's office is located) the inside looks much like any other office building. The only distinguishing mark - a yellow stripe running along the white wall.
Adornment consists mainly of posters like the one offering a $25,000 reward for a laptop stolen from the FBI (heads rolled over that one, Strobel said). Confidentiality is guaranteed.
We met in the conference room adjacent to Powell's office. The place was decorated with antique furniture and oil paintings; a mirror blackened from age hung in one corner.
I was nervous at first, but Powell is good at putting people at ease. His handshake is firm but not bonecrushing. He speaks with a slight lilt (probably inherited from his Caribbean forebears) that makes him sound a bit like Sean Connery doing an American accent. He broke the ice with a story about doing commencement speeches. They're more for the faculty than the students, he believes.
For the most part Powell delivered concise, well-constructed answers. The only time I felt he was being a little too diplomatic (no pun intended) was when the other reporter, Becky Waddingham, asked about his differences with the administration. He's a moderate, while most of the rest of President Bush's cabinet leans to the right.
"We have our debates, we have our discussions," he said. "But it's always for the purpose of moving the President's agenda along. And there are frequently different points of view. More often than not, we're in agreement."
I got in about four questions, and then my time was up. He gave us 35 minutes.
I've interviewed celebrities in the past, (the most famous of which was Jeff Tweedy, lead singer of Wilco). The novelty wears off quickly. But the feeling of awe I got from standing before Powell, one of the most powerful men in the country, if not the world, has not yet quite sunk in. I keep wondering if it was all real.
Write to Robert at rclopez@bsu.edu.
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