
When crises explode online, Kate Hartley's essential guide reveals how to navigate outrage and misinformation in the digital age. PR Week's go-to resource teaches empathy-driven strategies that transformed crisis management. In a world where reputation collapses with one tweet, can your brand survive?
Kate Hartley, author of Communicate in a Crisis, is a renowned crisis communications expert and co-founder of Polpeo, a crisis simulation training consultancy. She brings over 25 years of agency-side experience in reputation management and corporate PR to her work.
Hartley's work blends practical insights with the evolving challenges of digital media. Her book, a staple in business and crisis management genres, explores navigating modern crises amplified by social media, emphasizing empathy, transparency, and rapid response.
Hartley has trained global brands and spoken at high-profile forums like SXSW, PR Week’s Crisis Comms, and The Global PR Summit. A member of the PRCA and CIPR, she also guest lectures at universities and contributes to industry best practices. Communicate in a Crisis is widely used by professionals seeking to mitigate reputational risks in today’s hyperconnected world.
Communicate in a Crisis explores modern crisis management by prioritizing consumer behavior and brand trust. Kate Hartley redefines traditional approaches, offering strategies to handle social media backlash, fake news, and public outrage. The book emphasizes preparedness, rapid response, and leveraging influencers to mitigate reputational damage, supported by global case studies and interviews with industry leaders.
PR professionals, marketing teams, and business leaders navigating brand reputation challenges will benefit most. It’s also valuable for executives seeking actionable frameworks to manage crises in the social media era. Startups and established brands alike gain insights into building resilient communication strategies.
Yes—Hartley’s actionable advice and real-world examples make it essential for modern crisis management. The book’s focus on empathy, transparency, and adaptability resonates in an era where viral misinformation can escalate issues rapidly. Readers praise its balance of theory and practicality for brands of all sizes.
Kate Hartley is a crisis communication expert and co-founder of Polpeo, a simulation platform for digital crises. With decades of experience in PR and reputation management, her work combines behavioral psychology with practical strategies for brands facing public scrutiny.
Hartley defines issues as manageable challenges (e.g., minor customer complaints), while crises threaten brand survival (e.g., viral misinformation campaigns). The distinction helps teams prioritize responses, allocate resources, and avoid overreacting to non-critical problems.
Social media amplifies public outrage through algorithms favoring sensational content. Hartley advises brands to monitor platforms proactively, engage advocates to counter trolls, and avoid automated responses. Transparency and speed are critical to preventing rumors from spiraling.
Hartley stresses honesty and human-centric communication:
Key steps include:
Unlike older guides focused on press releases, Hartley’s approach integrates digital behavior and emotional intelligence. She prioritizes two-way dialogue over top-down messaging and emphasizes long-term reputation building over short-term damage control.
Some note limited depth on geopolitical crises or regulatory challenges. Others highlight the book’s sparse further reading recommendations despite its strong case studies. However, its pragmatic tone and digital focus outweigh these gaps.
With AI-driven misinformation and deepfakes escalating reputational risks, Hartley’s strategies for rapid, authentic communication remain critical. Brands facing cancel culture or viral backlash will find her insights on community engagement and real-time monitoring indispensable.
Examples include:
Siente el libro a través de la voz del autor
Captura ideas clave en un instante para un aprendizaje rápido
Social media has fundamentally altered how information spreads.
Loyal customers can become some of the harshest critics during a crisis.
The most effective crisis responses lead with empathy.
Admitting uncertainty is better than speculation or evasion.
The key to successful recovery is to view the crisis as a catalyst for positive change.
Desglosa las ideas clave de Communicate in a Crisis en puntos fáciles de entender para comprender cómo los equipos innovadores crean, colaboran y crecen.
Destila Communicate in a Crisis en pistas de memoria rápidas que resaltan los principios clave de franqueza, trabajo en equipo y resiliencia creativa.

Pregunta lo que quieras, elige la voz y co-crea ideas que realmente resuenen contigo.

Creado por exalumnos de la Universidad de Columbia en San Francisco
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Creado por exalumnos de la Universidad de Columbia en San Francisco

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Let's start by understanding the changing nature of crises in our digital age. Social media has fundamentally altered how information spreads and how quickly public opinion can turn against a brand. A single tweet or Facebook post can snowball into a full-blown PR disaster within hours. Take the case of United Airlines in 2017. When video footage of a passenger being forcibly removed from an overbooked flight went viral, the company's initial response only fueled public outrage. Their clinical, legalistic statement failed to show empathy and made the situation far worse. This incident highlights how critical it is to respond quickly, but more importantly, to respond with genuine empathy and understanding. The rise of fake news and misinformation presents another major challenge. False stories can spread like wildfire online, and brands must be prepared to counter them swiftly and effectively. We've seen numerous examples of companies caught flat-footed by viral hoaxes or deliberate disinformation campaigns.