I have been interviewed on many occasions and have been quoted out of context. 

Really nothing you can do except:Think before you speak!  And then hope for the best.   Be careful not speak negatively about people or places.  Also, alot of reporters will try and start an interview by talking to you "off the record", this is usually a ploy to get you comfortable and catch you off guard later in the interview.

Good luck

 I try to have a written fact sheet with the names of people and places with correct spellings. I write down dates and times of performances and any other facts that I think might cause a problem if they get printed wrong in the paper ie. the wrong dates for an upcoming production.

L.

We were interviewed by someone for a statewide Public Television program.  It was a totally positive experience.  The production staff was very professional and very friendly and did their very best to tell our story.  It was a seven minute segment on a 30 minute show.  Of course the whole point of the show is always to show the interesting and positive things going on around the state, so they aren't going to try to get anyone to slip up and say something negative...

We also were interviewed a by a writer for the largest newspaper in our state.  She, too did a fantastic job with lots of color pictures and a very well written story. 

Both experiences had a very positive impact on attendance at our theatre in a small village, bringing audience to us from up to two hours away.

You can only control so much during an interview. Think before you speak, keep your sentences short and on one subject. If the interviewer asks a question you can't answer, say so. If they ask a question you don't want answer, answer a question you do want to answer (this is a favorite technique of politicians); kind of like changing the subject... although, with this type of article, this probably won't be an issue.

The big thing is to keep your answers fairly short if possible. Long answers get edited down or paraphrased. Don't try to cram too much information into a single answer. As others have mentioned, don't be negative when talking about groups or people. "We can always do a better job of working together," sounds much better than, "Groups in this town couldn't work together to put out a fire, much less put on a show."

By the way, speaking as a former reporter, students are always good to interview on this type of a story because they tend to get around more and be more familiar with the various groups.

Have fun.