FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 11, 2018

Media Contact: Jessica Stark Rivinius
Communications Director
301-404-6632
rivinius@start.umd.edu

START provides government with analysis on effective crisis communication

The attributes of effective crisis communication leadership are discovered through interviews
with 24 U.S. government crisis leaders and a case study.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Researchers, Brooke Liu, Irina A. Iles and Emma Herovic, of
START found that effective crisis leaders can understand and manage a crisis regardless of its
uncertainty; the leader can execute flexibility, humbleness and accuracy all while remaining
present in the crisis. The findings also suggest that in order to have successful inter-
organizational collaborations one should align their goals and messages. However, according to
their research, nothing paves the way for effective communication strategies than learning from
previous crisis.

Researchers interviewed 24 U.S. government crisis leaders to uncover these findings, and
conducted a content analysis to understand how governments manage crisis communications.
Once completed, researchers conducted a case study that detailed the federal, state and local
leader’s communication effectiveness during the 2017 Tubbs wildfire crisis.

The 2017 Tubbs wildfire, the most destructive wildfire in California history, lent itself to be the
perfect crisis case study because it showcased how the government used proper communication
leadership skills, but also highlighted areas where they could grow. The findings from the study
indicate that the leaders were responsive in their communication efforts, showed empathy and
aligned their communication goals and messages with each other. Their research also shows that
twitter was the most used social media platform during the Tubbs fire, as many local leaders
used it to post information updates for the public.

On the contrary, researchers believed that leaders could have offered the public instructions on
how to protect themselves during the fire, as well as, provided more information on how people
can manage and cope with the crisis since it yields uncertainty. Lastly, researchers stated that
leaders at the state and national level could have shared posts, made by local leaders, more often
with their networks to increase communication efforts.

In all, this three-stage project has achieved its goal of determining the attributes of effective
crisis communication and left its mark within the state, federal and local governments.

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About START
The National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START) is
supported in part by the Science and Technology Directorate of the U.S. Department of
Homeland Security through a Center of Excellence program led by the University of Maryland.
START uses state‐of‐the‐art theories, methods and data from the social and behavioral sciences
to improve understanding of the origins, dynamics and social and psychological impacts of
terrorism. For more information, contact START at infostart@start.umd.edu or visit
www.start.umd.edu.