How Not to Answer a Press Question

Erik Prince: Founder of Blackwater

This morning, I heard an NPR interview, "Blackwater Founder Backs Outsourcing Afghan War-Fighting to Contractors," with Erik Prince. Although Prince quit the Naval Academy, I completely respect his reason: He loved the Navy but disliked the Academy. I also had thoughts about quitting the Academy to return to the Fleet as a corporal. It's an oppressive place where we joked that all of your human rights were taken away and slowly returned to you over the course of four years, and called privileges. The fact that Prince went on to earn a commission, became a Navy SEAL, and is now a multi-billionaire earns my respect as a professional.

In this morning's interview he sounded like he had a well-thought-out solution to the U.S. presence in Afghanistan. He wasn't the most eloquent speaker, but that's OK since eloquence can sometimes be fluff that makes a bad idea sound good.

Prince's solution to the U.S. involvement in Afghanistan seemed viable until the last question, "Does your company... want any part of this business?" It was a simple yes or no question and he tried to be deceitful while speaking the truth in his convoluted answer (answered in a style that he probably would not accept from one of his operators). He wasn't deceitful on his facts or opinions, rather he was deceitful as to the motivation for his idea. There are times when it's OK to lie or be deceitful, but this wasn't one of them. His answer sounded more like a politician. Great politicians are some of the the smartest people, in the context in which they operate. A typical politician will take the question they are asked and not directly answer it – instead, they answer the question which they wished they had been asked. This is called spin, which, at it's most extreme, is the ability to highlight the truth in a lie, or the lie in a truth.

The problem with Prince's answer to the final NPR question was that he was caught off guard, without a prepared answer, and threw out some distractions; all of which were facts describing what kind of work his company, Frontier Resource Group, does and what he wants for his sons. His first response to the question was so off-topic that the NPR interviewer had to re-ask the question, specifically pinning him down and making him appear to lose credibility on this topic. The last word he spoke was, "Absolutely." That should have been the first word he spoke.

This is how the final question should have been answered...
NPR: "Does your company... want any part of this business [in Afghanistan]?"
Prince: Absolutely! I want our company, Frontier Resource Group, which excels at the logistical support needed in Afghanistan, to be a part of a better and cheaper solution to save money and lives. Especially as a taxpayer and as a father of sons, I don't want my sons going abroad into what has been a poorly conducted war, so far.

Sure, it's easy for me write this blog post after I've had time to think about it and tweak my words to say exactly what I want to convey. However, his answer might go deeper into the personality of a person, whom I've never met; it might be a tell that he'll dodge an unpleasant truth by burying it under facts and emotions. But, I could be wrong.