Introduction
Drafting high-quality interview questions is a critical step in investigative journalism, academic research, and content production. Yet, it can be time-consuming and mentally demanding—especially when working across diverse topics or under tight deadlines. This is where ChatGPT steps in as a powerful research and brainstorming assistant. In this guide, we will explore how to use ChatGPT to draft interview questions for sources, ensuring that your questions are relevant, thought-provoking, and tailored to your interviewee’s expertise. We’ll also cover key prompts, customization strategies, and practical examples that you can adapt across industries.
Why Use ChatGPT for Drafting Interview Questions?
1. Saves Time
Instead of starting from scratch, ChatGPT can instantly generate a baseline set of questions that can be reviewed and refined.
2. Reduces Bias
AI-generated questions can introduce angles you might not naturally think of, helping reduce one-sidedness.
3. Improves Depth and Variety
ChatGPT can suggest open-ended, follow-up, technical, and contextual questions, enhancing your overall interview structure.
4. Great for Brainstorming Across Domains
Whether you’re speaking to a climate scientist or a small business owner, ChatGPT can adapt your prompts to any field.
Step-by-Step Guide: Using ChatGPT to Draft Interview Questions
Step 1: Clarify Your Interview Objective
Before using ChatGPT, you need a clear purpose:
- Are you looking to inform, investigate, inspire, or entertain?
- What’s the desired outcome of the interview?
- What type of source are you interviewing (expert, eyewitness, insider, etc.)?
Step 2: Feed ChatGPT With Structured Context
A well-structured prompt gets better responses. The more context you provide, the sharper the AI’s output will be.
Basic Prompt Template:
You are a journalist preparing to interview [type of source] about [topic]. Generate a list of interview questions that will help uncover [goal].
Example Prompt:
You are a journalist interviewing a cybersecurity expert about data breaches in small businesses. Generate 15 insightful interview questions that uncover causes, solutions, and emerging risks.
Prompt Examples by Industry
Here are industry-specific prompt templates you can plug into ChatGPT:
1. For Journalists
You’re interviewing a whistleblower from a tech startup about unethical data practices. Draft 10 open-ended questions to understand what happened, when, and why.
2. For Academic Researchers
You’re conducting a qualitative study on urban migration. Generate in-depth interview questions to ask city dwellers who recently relocated from rural areas.
3. For Business Bloggers or Content Creators
You’re creating a podcast episode with a serial entrepreneur. Generate engaging interview questions that explore failure, mindset, and pivoting in business.
4. For Healthcare Professionals
You’re speaking with a public health official on post-pandemic healthcare delivery. Draft 12 questions focused on system weaknesses and future preparedness.
5. For Human Resources / Recruiters
You’re interviewing a hiring manager on trends in remote work. Create a question set exploring challenges, team dynamics, and remote onboarding.
How to Refine AI-Generated Interview Questions
ChatGPT is a great first draft generator, but you should always humanize, contextualize, and polish the final output.
Tips for Refinement:
- Remove redundancy: Merge similar questions.
- Add local relevance: Adapt to the region, audience, or current events.
- Inject tone: Casual, formal, probing, or curious, depending on your format.
- Check sequencing: Start broad, then drill into specifics.
Advanced Prompting Techniques
To maximize ChatGPT’s output, try the following:
1. Role Prompting
Make ChatGPT act like an expert:
Act like a seasoned political journalist. Draft 10 sharp questions to ask a government official about budget transparency.
2. Layered Prompting
Build on previous answers:
Based on the last 5 questions, write suitable follow-up questions that dig deeper into each topic.
3. Segmenting Questions
Organize questions into categories:
Group the questions into themes: background, challenges, solutions, predictions.
Example Output: Interviewing a Sustainability Expert
Prompt:
You're interviewing a sustainability officer at a multinational company about their green transition. Generate 12 insightful questions across background, initiatives, metrics, and impact.
ChatGPT Output (Condensed):
Background:
- What motivated your company to prioritize sustainability?
- How did the initial sustainability roadmap come together?
Initiatives:
3. What specific programs have you launched in the last 2 years?
4. How do you balance profitability with sustainability goals?
Metrics:
5. What KPIs are used to measure environmental progress?
6. How do you track and report on carbon emissions?
Impact & Future Outlook:
7. What has been the biggest challenge in this transition?
8. How do you plan to adapt to evolving environmental regulations?
Best Practices When Using ChatGPT for Interviews
- Always review AI-generated content critically.
- Cross-check facts and assumptions—ChatGPT doesn’t have real-time data.
- Don’t rely solely on AI: Blend AI prompts with your own voice and research.
- Avoid leading questions: Ensure neutrality for better responses from sources.
- Maintain ethical standards: Be transparent if you used AI to assist in content creation.
Conclusion
ChatGPT offers a scalable, customizable, and creative way to draft interview questions across various industries. By crafting the right prompts and refining the output, you can streamline your preparation process, uncover deeper insights, and spend more time engaging meaningfully with your sources.
This method isn’t about replacing the interviewer’s intuition—it’s about enhancing it. Use ChatGPT as a brainstorming partner, not a crutch.
