Conflict and chaos may be inevitable, but Matt Charles, author and director of the Brian Lamb School of Communication\u2019s online graduate programs, is convinced that everyone has a choice in how they navigate crises. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
His newest book, \u201cCrisis: A Global History,\u201d explores the lessons we can glean from nine types of crises that are repeated throughout recorded human history. Released August 2025 by Kendall Hunt Publishing, \u201cCrisis: A Global History,\u201d is the result of Charles\u2019 Sisyphean task to persuade people to communicate with more wisdom. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCommunication is more important than ever because we are really a global society,\u201d Charles said. \u201cWe really don’t have the luxury of misunderstanding what somebody’s saying.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Good communication can bridge the gaps between ideological, cultural and socioeconomic differences, Charles said. It is especially powerful during a crisis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Following this theme, Charles presents nine crisis case studies: conflict, disease, economic, environmental, famine, natural, organizational\/reputational, social justice and technological. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCrisis has followed people throughout history,\u201d Charles said. \u201cWhat have humans done? How have they responded? If they responded in a way that didn’t work, why? What’s really the slipping up point? Is it leadership?\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI find that a lot of it is just leadership,\u201d Charles said. \u201cIt comes down to either really good or really bad leadership. You can also have leadership that is situational – might do great in one area, but not so great in another. Herbert Hoover is a great example of this.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hoover is best known for his failed economic policies while serving as the U.S. president during the Great Depression. Less well known are his efforts in providing food and aid to domestic and foreign survivors of war and natural disasters. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEverybody knows him with the Depression, leading as one of our least popular presidents,\u201d Charles said. \u201cBut a lot of people don’t know that that guy saved millions of lives overseas during World War I with his humanitarian efforts with feeding people.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
As Charles points out, crises are not a new phenomenon. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe have all dealt with this all the way back to prehistoric times,\u201d Charles said, \u201cThere’s even a couple of cases I have (in the book) like cave paintings where people are trying to communicate things such as a famine or conflict. But we work through it the best we can.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Charles has seen the best and the worst of crisis communications. Early in his police career, he worked as a special investigator for the New York City Administration for Children’s Services, where he liaised with the New York City Police Department\u2019s Special Victims Unit. As he investigated high-profile drug and sex crimes involving children, he was presented the opportunity to work with the local media. His supervisors noticed and crisis communications became one of his roles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Since then, he has helped organizations like UVA navigate unexpected turmoil. While a public spokesman for UVA, his challenges included the \u201cUnite the Right\u201d rally in 2017. The violence from the surrounding neighborhood spread onto the UVA campus after torch-carrying white nationalists marched through the campus and clashed with counter-protestors. He was also part of the university\u2019s response team after the 2017 death of Otto Warmbier, a UVA student who was detained in North Korea. Warmbier succumbed to the injuries suffered during his 17-month captivity shortly after returning to the U.S. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
He has also led strategic and crisis communication training for the U.S. State Department, the Drug Enforcement Agency and National Criminal Justice Command College. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Charles joined Purdue in 2016 as an online communications instructor, eventually becoming head of online graduate programs in 2024. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
He said he believes everyone can benefit from learning how to communicate more effectively. He recommends exploring resources that focus on strategic, persuasive and crisis communications. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
His book, for example, explores the positive and negative ways people responded to the monumental moments they experienced and the consequences of their reactions. Charles said he hoped his readers would look at those situations and apply the principles covered to their personal lives. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe key is just to really try to learn from the past,\u201d Charles said. \u201cDon’t slip up on the same mistakes. Even if it feels like something that may not be close to the crisis you’re dealing with, there generally are going to be some nuggets or tidbits you can learn from and can apply to it.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Interested in improving your strategic, persuasive or crisis communications skills? Purdue\u2019s online Graduate Certificate in Communication and Leadership<\/a> offers several courses designed to help professionals master communication in high-stakes situations. The online Graduate Certificate in Strategic Communication Management<\/a> program equips students with skills such as strategic planning, crisis communication, global engagement and campaign evaluation. Students can also focus in either strategic communication or leadership with Purdue’s highly ranked online Master of Science in Communication<\/a>. Learn more at the programs\u2019 webpages.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Conflict and chaos may be inevitable, but Matt Charles, author and director of the Brian Lamb School of Communication\u2019s online graduate programs, is convinced that everyone has a choice in how they navigate crises. \u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":8604,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[68,70],"tags":[],"area-of-study":[],"person":[73,74],"class_list":["post-8488","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-program-news","person-alumni","person-students"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t