How We Chose What to Ask and When to Challenge Tucker Carlson

“The Interview” host Lulu Garcia-Navarro talks about her preparation to interview Mr. Carlson and some judgment calls she had to make in real time.

If you could interview Tucker Carlson, what would you ask?

That’s no simple question. A successful interview is revealing, engaging, memorable. Mr. Carlson, one of America’s best-known conservative commentators, has answered a gazillion questions over the decades, and he’s skilled at not being pinned down when he doesn’t want to be. So how do you draw out illuminating and unexpected answers from a very public figure?

Lulu Garcia-Navarro just had two conversations with Mr. Carlson for “The Interview,” a New York Times show. I spoke with her about preparation, the framing of her questions and some of the decisions she had to make in real time, when things turned adversarial. This conversation has been edited and condensed.