Johannesburg – Over the past few months, there has been a trend of concern in South African media. Experts conducting TV interviews from cars via Microsoft Team or Zoom.
Remote work offers flexibility, but this practice hurts professionalism, brand trust and audience perception.
Why should you stop instead and what should you do?
1. Looks professional and not sloppy
First impressions are important. Car interior: – Distracting backgrounds, poor lighting, nasty camera angles – “not ready” cream.
Viewers associate quality with reliability. A coincidence setup undermines your expertise.
2. Audio and visual quality is struggling
The car is not soundproof. Background noise (traffic, horn, or engine hum) confuses clarity.
The glare from windows and unstable cameras further reduce the viewer's experience.
There are studios and quiet home offices.
3. Damage your brand and personal reputation
The interviewees represent the company or field.
Car interviews suggest that they ignore the importance of the audience's time and topic.
Will the CEO receive shareholder calls from the backseat? Probably not.
4. Missed engagement opportunities
A proper setup allows for visual assistance, branding, and controlled interactions. Car interviews limit engagement – screen sharing, no eye contact, and zero control over interruptions.
5. South Africa deserves a better standard
SA's media landscape is competitive worldwide. Low-effort interviews reinforce stereotypes about “unsafe” African professionalism.
Improved production quality will improve the national voice.
Better choices:
Use a home office: The cost of a tidy background, ring lights and microphone is less than the damage of reputation.
Renting a coworking space: Many affordable options offer professional settings.
Pre-recording: If live performance is not required, please record in a stable environment.
Convenience should not override reliability.
South African experts must reject car interviews: mediocrity should not be a trend. Better demands, better offerings.
Reputation Manager, Weighing: Please: How do car interviews damage brand awareness on television? Drop insights below! #mediareputation #professionalism”.
Car Interviewencajanine hillsmediaReliability Newspaper AfricaLumoteWorkstandardWorkstandLemot AfricaTV Interview
*This article was first published in our sister publication techfinancials.co.za
