Managing Oral History Interviews
Gholam-Reza Azary-Khakestar
Translated by Kianoush Borzouei
2025-12-02
One of the foundational and crucial considerations in oral history is the selection of the subject of an oral history project. Although oral-history topics are numerous and wide-ranging, interviewers should keep several key principles in mind when choosing a theme. First, does the proposed subject possess genuine researchability? Second, is there access to primary, first-hand interviewees? And finally, does the topic merit the investment of time and effort? In essence, the selected subject must be worthy of documentation and preservation—meaning that it should pertain to an event or phenomenon of historical significance. Ideally, it should be a novel or understudied topic for which written sources are silent or virtually nonexistent. Such silences often emerge when aspects of the past have not been recorded in official documents, state archives, or the media. In these situations, well-designed and properly directed oral history initiatives can bridge gaps in the historical record and generate new, first-hand sources.
Furthermore, the interviewer's level of knowledge concerning the chosen topic must be prioritized. Interviewers are expected to have a comprehensive command of the subject, engage in focused study, and consider all of its dimensions. Reviewing newspapers—especially detailed written reports—can substantially enhance the interviewer’s knowledge base. A deep understanding of the topic enables the interviewer to pose more precise questions and accurately interpret answers, while preventing the interviewee’s generalities from derailing the conversation. This is, in effect, a core element of interview management. It is often said that the interviewer’s awareness accounts for half the success of any oral history project. The interviewer does more than merely ask questions; they determine the direction of the conversation, the depth of information elicited, and even the degree of trust the interviewee extends.
Formulating Questions
Typically, structured questions determine the trajectory of an interview. Interviewers, therefore, design their questions according to the information they possess about each individual. Precise, well-crafted, and intelligent questioning encourages the interviewee to articulate their memories with greater clarity. In projects intended for publication as books, questions are generally structured and organized according to the overarching design of the research. That is, for each chapter of the prospective book, a set of questions is formulated and posed depending on the interviewee’s familiarity with the topic.
In institutions where interviews serve primarily archival purposes and policy-making is not oriented toward specific outputs, interviewees are questioned on a broad array of subjects—including family histories or biographies, social and political developments, and various events in which they have participated. Interviewers, in such cases, enjoy wide latitude and often document the aggregate of the interviewee’s life span. The compilation of such material, however, tends to create challenges due to the multiplicity of narratives, requiring the editor to select portions of the individual’s life and era for publication.
At times, oral-history researchers—upon reviewing the interview transcripts—conclude that the recorded material does not meet their scholarly needs. Researchers approach oral-history texts with objectives shaped by their specific research questions, and it is not uncommon that certain inquiries yield limited results. Ultimately, no single interview can be deemed fully comprehensive or complete.
Developing the Project Proposal
To conduct an oral history project, an interviewer must possess a comprehensive and meticulously designed plan. This entails formulating the project’s theoretical framework at the outset. The most important elements to consider include: the purpose of undertaking the oral history project; the anticipated outputs of this endeavor; and whether the objective is merely the recording and archiving of interviews, or whether the project is intended to become a book, scholarly article, or historical documentary. The interviewer must also determine the number of interview hours, the individuals to be interviewed, and the precise timeframe for the project’s commencement and completion. Likewise, the overall budget, projected costs, and required technical equipment must be estimated. In practice, thematic oral history projects often lack strict timelines, and it is not uncommon for certain projects to extend for five years—or even a decade.
The selection of interviewees is a crucial and sensitive stage in oral history. A lack of diligence at this point may result in the recording of inaccurate or unreliable narratives. Hence, several considerations should guide the selection process:
- Individuals who were directly involved in the events or transformations under study.
- Individuals who are recognized authorities on the subject and possess first-hand knowledge.
- Individuals who speak with honesty and without fear, offering unembellished accounts.
Once a list of prospective interviewees has been prepared, it is advisable to begin with elderly or long-lived individuals. This group is often more willing to speak candidly and without apprehension. Moreover, they typically provide first-hand recollections, possess a broad perspective on historical events, and offer analytically valuable insights. Should these interviewees also have strong memories, their accounts are often exceptionally rich.
In general, defining the subject and conducting interviews constitute only one phase of an oral history project; beginning the interview process without clear objectives and planning rarely yields meaningful results. Thus, after selecting the topic and conducting the interviews, the archiving and management of the generated materials becomes critically important. Efficient systems must allow for rapid access to interview files and transcripts. In archival institutions, once an interview is completed, the relevant details—such as name, date, time, and contract number—are logged, after which the files are transferred to specialists for transcription.
The transcription of oral history interviews is essential for several reasons. First, it ensures the existence of a textual record alongside the audio; in cases where the audio file becomes unavailable, the transcript serves as a reliable backup and secures the preservation of the content. Second, transcripts significantly facilitate researchers’ access, enabling them to easily consult or extract the specific sections they need.
Effective management of an oral history project is crucial because it describes the roadmap and enables the project to achieve its intended outcomes. Proper project management ensures that materials are collected, recorded, and preserved accurately.
Collected data are archived systematically and in an organized, classified manner, allowing researchers, students, and the general public to access them through a structured process. Conversely, if interviews are conducted without a clear methodological framework or without proper interviewer training, the resulting data may be incomplete, distorted, or irrelevant.
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