INTERVIEWING PLAN

Subjects:

Doreen Mocha-grandmother
Connie-Co-Worker

I will be conducting interviews with both immigrants in person, with my grandmother at her apartment in New York City, and with my co-worker Connie at work in Hartsdale, NY.  I want to be able to go in depth with both and get down to specific reasons and ideas as to what prompted their travels to the United States and their ideas and opinions on the American dream and if it is still a viable and realistic dream and goal to achieve.


Questions:
1. What were your first initial reactions to coming to America?
2. Did you have any pre-concieved notions on America before arriving?  Have any specific hopes or dreams for your arrival?
3. What factors made you immigrate to the United States?
4. Have any current or past events in United States history affected your views and opinions on the United States?  Have any events altered your thoughts or opinions of the United States?  What specific events have hurt or enhanced your ideas of America?
5. What did you expect by coming to America?  Work?  Family?  Wealth?
6. What was the appeal of America that made you want to come and achieve your goals and dreams?
7. What would you do differently if you could change something involving your arrival to America?
8.  Do you believe the United States is still a premier destination to come start a life?  Why or why not?
9. Do you feel you achieved your American dreams?  How did you achieve them, did it take longer or shorter than you originally thought?
10. Where do you see the future of the United States going from here?  Any concerns or hopes?
11. Do you think it's tougher for immigrants to come to America now, or back when you arrived?  Why  or why not?
12.  What if anything do you believe America needs to do in order to continue to be the land of opportunity and place for people to flock to?

Video-Grandmother
Text-Co-Worker
Audio-Possibly both

I would like to incorporate all aspects of multimedia coverage into my piece and plan on using video for my grandmother's interview, text for my co-worker, and possibly audio for both if it fits into the piece properly.  Both subjects are witty and full of terrific opinions and can offer excellent first hand knowledge on their immigration and their own personal stories and experiences.  I look forward to having both individuals comment on this important subject and hearing first hand whether their thoughts and ideas of the American dream and way of life have greatly changed or altered, for the better or worse.