ABSTRACT
The method of oral history was initially used to augment existing archival research and to fill in the gaps in the life stories of elite members of society. These days, while researchers still focus on its emancipatory potential, the method of oral history is also being used in popular culture to provide historical reference points for popular entertainment. Oral history interviewers should be flexible and they should allow the narrator to take the interview in the direction he or she wants to go. Although reporters and law enforcement officials sometimes use silence to force a non-compliant source to speak, the use of silence in oral history interviewing is mainly used to help give a person additional time to gather his or her thoughts. While listening to an interviewee, it is important to also consider his or her non-verbal body language and other signals, as well as to be aware of researchers own non-verbal responses.
