That's an interesting question...

The government was recently criticised in the media for spending vast sums of money to learn how not to answer questions. That's one perspective on media training. It's 19 years since I first became involved in delivering such training. The call came from the man pictured John Brand, founder of Sheffield-based TRT, which stands for Television and Radio Techniques. John, then in his forties, was a larger than life character, which is usually a euphemism for heavy drinker. John was certainly that. He once berated John Humphrys for doing media training "on the side" at a glittering Institute of Public Relations dinner in London, during pre-meal drinks. John, who was an officer of the IPR in those days, did not actually have the meal. Having imbibed liberally, just before grace was read and in full view of gathered dignitaries, he fell like an overloaded, old-fashioned coat stand off the podium and had to be carried out. That didn't get a mention in his seminal work on presentation skills. Having been a thespian in his early days, John later became a television presenter. But when a pioneering bid to bring cable television to Sheffield collapsed he diversified into training. In truth, he was always a frustrated performer. But delegates loved the stick he gave them on courses. His weakness, apart from whisky, was his love of two huge Great Danes. However much we told him to keep the dogs locked up on course days, run from a purpose built studio in his home, he would not listen. One day, one of them slavered over the leg of the Lord Mayor of Leeds, leaving a seven inch strip of phlegm on his trousers. Having repaired the damage, the other dog later left two huge wet muddy paw marks on the back of a millionaire businessman in what might have been a scene from a Disney cartoon. But one thing John always insisted upon was that delegates were not there to be taught how to avoid questions. Many people who have to be interviewed, or to speak in public, are either very nervous or simply don't know how to organise their material properly. They put the wrong emphasis on points and they fill their talk with complicated jargon. One man told me there was no such thing as "junk mail", oh no, it was "mission critical marketing collaterals". I have trained the great and the good, CEOs and captains of industry but never an MP. While I have trained many local politicians, it has never been to handle the hustings, more about explaining policy to council tax payers. In this ever more frenetic world it's absolutely vital that communication is clear, precise and effective. Sadly, drink eventually did for John and he died in his mid fifties. I would have paid good money to see him quiz Michael Martin on MPs' expenses, even in training.