Unlike other things in life, when it comes to interviews, there is really only one way to do it: in person. Sorry. Many of us just prefer the phone than actual interaction (which is such a charming, old-fashioned idea.) "There's no travel time, so it's less time out of your day, and I type the notes into my computer as we talk, so it's less work later. If I do the interview in person, I'm taking notes by hand and later I have to transcribe them into the computer. Which is time consuming AND boring. This applies more if you're a freelancer and you operate on the time-is-money notion. If you're on staff, you tend not to care that it takes longer." However, if you can do it in person, do it. "You can get your subjects into conversation and make them say more if they feel like you're relaxing and hanging out and talking. Plus, you pick up on visual cues (Like, "Oh! he was totally uncomfortable talking about his daughter. I could tell because he crossed his arms" or something," says Melissa Walker, senior editor at ElleGirl.

However, when it comes to the other mediums, the phone is preferred over the internet. If you want to get more personality out of a subject, you're going to get it through their voice, not words onscreen. Even though interviews seem easier via email, especially if you're shy, you're not going to get much personality through them. "You never know who's writing the answers, and it often reads like a PR person wrote them. Replies also tend to be sanitized and they lack those lively, unguarded moments where you get the best quotes. There can be misunderstandings and misinterpretations via email that may take many subsequent emails to clear up, or, you may not realize there's a misunderstanding and get it wrong. It's easier to make the mistake of taking something out of context, too. I get much better interviews via phone than email and find the sources come to trust you more by phone and so they open up more. I only do interviews by email if a) I'm desperate and the source is insisting on it b) it's only one or two questions," says one freelance I spoke with.

"The only time I'll do an interview over e-mail is when I'm writing some highly technical piece about laboratory equipment for the medical trade magazine I write for," says another writer. "That's because 1) the piece just entails reporting which company is putting out which analyzer and what it'll be able to do, and 2) if someone's talking fast on the phone about something really technical and you miss a word, you're screwed. (My editor there knows I do it all over e-mail, and she's fine with it.)," says another writer. "Otherwise, I agree, e-mail completely sucks for anything other than a quick follow-up question or two. You just don't get those good, off-the-cuff quotes. It gives people the chance to think too much."

However, these days, if you're internet savvy, you can actually chat via your computer in lieu of a telephone, especially if you're trying to save money on long distance programs. Programs like Skype and Dialpad let you call other computers and phones. Issues like reception and echoes are not quite ironed out with all services however so, obviously, you'll want to make sure all your wrinkles are ironed out because nobody wants to be interviewed by a reporter whose main question is "What? What?"

Here are a few more links on the pros and cons of interviewing via email and some very very basic tips for interviewing via phone.