Round 3 Entry for Chris de Ville

* Obviously intellectual and capable of dealing with complex and/or deep subject matter. However, comes across a bit dull in presentation. When interviewed comes across very sure and confident. Energy level remains a concern but clearly Chris is intelligent and capable of interesting dialogue.

* Chris’ strength in earlier rounds seemed to be the poetic way that he externalized his own experience, with this round, I think he shows a real ability to engage the ideas of others. Also, I just really love the rich but easy quality of his voice. I like listening to him.

* Interview: Seemed to be an over-deconstruction of book that I still know nothing about. Language sounds right off the back of the book, or from a review - I'm not convinced the concepts Chris brought up are his own. I did enjoy it more the second time, but my initial reaction was not positive. Completely un-natural.

* Chris is provocative and original, if a little academic sounding, reflecting some of the best and worst aspects of public radio. I just couldn’t get into his interview about a book I hadn’t read and probably never would. I find him intriguing, still, since he clearly is a maverick and a deep thinker, but don’t know if he can actually sustain a conversation I’d listen to.

* His interview with Paco kind of resets the geek scale. Takes too long to get to an explanation of the book. Not sure what this interview is about - the book, econ theory? Why should we care? This seems like a very long 5 minutes. Never got a sense of who the guest was as a person. He answers his questions from the head - want to know where his heart is. Answering the where to you live in the most basic terms - no description, no images. Again - did not really answer the struggle question. Can't imagine spending time with him.

* Young, bright, slightly esoteric. He may be a philosophy nerd and need to open to wider audience. Slight lisp. Overall engaging qualities.

That he made it through. I thought both of his interviews were in the bottom tier, not as interesting or engaging as Anne's, nor as polished as Chuck's. This is starting to seem more like a real reality show every round!

That said, good luck.

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Chris,
I'm fascinated by what you bring to the PRTQ table. Once again, yours is the one I returned to for multiple listens. Excellent subject, compelling interview. Although I would ask that you relax a bit with the questioning, which rambled at times. Less script and more interaction would be nice. When it came to the reverse, you managed to save the conversation with humour and grace when faced with an unprepared host.
Don't forget us in Buenos Aires.
Theresa
PS Are you an HP Lovecraft-style materialist?

slow. down.

yes, it's true that most of the other contestants, at this point, have more experience than you on the air, doing interviews, etc., (perhaps more 'npr-olished') but i think your energy and approach epitomizes the spirit of the contest (to find new, emerging talent?). i hope to see you again in round 4...

and I really enjoyed it. I've been a fan since the beginning.

chris seemed much more alive and interesting when he was talking about himself than when he was doing the interview. he didn't bring it to life for me--perhaps it was the subject matter itself, in fairness to him. i'm pretty intellectual but science is not my forte and i didn't find that his interview rendered the subject matter as accessible to me as i would have liked. he himself was a bit too intellectual in the interview, i thought. in the second half of his challenge he was much stronger.

With all due respect, I do not expect wikipedia to drive the interviews I hear on NPR.

Although Chris is pleasant to listen to- and I'm sure is a super great guy- he just doesn't grab me. It doesn't feel like he is really inside what he is doing- that he is more in his head than in his heart.

spiffing interview! a real pro.

1) congratulations.
2) thank you for smarting it up instead of drumbling it down.
2a) i'm particularly interested in your program-development idea, and impressed that you committed to it & used its conceptual construct as the start-point when ramping-up for your round three interview.
3) you give good voice, kid.
3a) you've got chutzpah.
4) you've got my vote.

He doesn't seem very comfortable with the guest or with the microphone. Too many of these finalists don't sound very "radio friendly," as if they would much rather be at a coffee shop with their guests than in a studio.

DeVille does a great job with this round, providing capable content and response as well as thought-provoking material on a range of topics. As for earlier comments raising questions about technical capacity -- these tools can be honed and crafted with more time and practice. (But I'm not even sure the comments are on target anyhow.) The real focus is DeVille's obvious natural gift in conversation, intellect, and exploration. These are tools not easily come by -- which makes his entry the more refreshing and valued.

I suspect I'll get PC-spammed for this comment, but I feel it must be said. Athletes have to be physically fit, musicians have to have a good ear, and supermodels have to have a good body. Not always, but generally these certain jobs demand certain physical attributes. As a host on the radio, there's probably only one condition necessary: a good voice. While Chris had smart, interesting interviews (which I'll admit raised the bar in terms of content), he seriously lacks in the area of clear and confident speaking. Weak vocal cordage and a mild lisp (or so it sounds) seem to be the main culprits. Bummer man.

You use lots of big words. I guess that makes you the smartest guy around. I think it's wonderful that you built a house all by yourself! Too bad you couldn't find a friend or two to help you out with that. I hope this thing works out for you. I won my internet soul crushing contest.

Hopefully we can be winners together! I'm kicking around the idea of paying you a visit in BA with my winnings. I'll figure all of that out when I actually have the check in my hot little hands.

Keep up the good work, macho man.

interesting choice, and intelligent presentation. i would enjoy hearing more from you if you could keep this up. good luck.

say: "quantum quackery"

three times really fast...

it's hard!.. heh! ..

love it though and made me laugh..

how the hell did bRett miChael's get into your interview? .. rude!.. kinda throws you off.. but you handled it like you probably would have in real life.. which wHas cool... but come on' mann.. you were at a disadvantage with this guy startin' the interview with that... what a small percentage would think of 'brett michael' and the relation to 'what we believe in'... this guy must interview alot of music folk.. heh!

sounds like you believe in something.. maybe it's stuff that is challenged... ever changing.. .. or causes questions...

you sound like a spiritual dude...

reX. booth
take it to realiTy!
http://www.publicradioquest.com/node/1679
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rex@rexsworld.com

I'm sorry, but did I just hear you yawn when you were talking about belief? I swear I did. Cracked me up.

The interview...it didn't seem like he was really in a conversation, but was just moving through his set of questions. You have to be able to pick out the interesting things the interviewee says and be willing to divert the interview focus along those points. I didn't see a lot of that here. There were options for follow-ups that Chris didn't take, and I didn't get a good sense about what the book was even about.

The interview with Chris. I don't care what neighborhood of Austin he lives in. Sorry to be blunt, but it's true.

Overall, I think it was ok. He has a nice voice, but radio personalities are a surrogate for their listeners. They have to think about what their listeners might be wondering about. So, they have to be willing to ask really stupid questions sometimes. He seems too happy being smart to accept that sometimes in radio you have pretend to be ignorant to help the listeners along.

Never trust and big butt and smile, indeed. Bad Mojo.

I loved this entry. Loved it. I'm reading some of the comments about it being too brainy, and I couldn't disagree more. I love that you didn't dumb it down. That you took a brainy subject and went with it. I could follow it, and I am by no means a brainiac. Congrats bro.

I enjoyed this, and I like the way you followed the conversation from pseudoscience to currency to patriotism. And Brett who? The only Poison I know is the Bell Biv Devoe song. Never trust a big butt and a smile, Chris. Never.

Anyway, good job!