About Me

I'm Nick Silk and I'm a senior at the University of Michigan who's a Public Policy student on a public affairs career track. I have experience in both disciplines, both from a policy evaluation perspective and communications perspective. Through my coursework, I've been educated on policy issues that challenge America's democratic fragility, and through my professional experiences I've worked with corporate clients to help them overcome crises with responsible communications to staff, stakeholders, and the public. I have a passion for these subjects, and I've seen them become more apparent in the current political environment - there are massive, systemic threats to our democracy that need to be addressed sooner rather than later. In my opinion, a Biden victory in the 2020 election was a much-needed step towards recognizing the seriousness of these issues, but I'm not complacent with an electoral win and I know these problems won't just vanish with a new president in the Oval Office.

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I created this project to explore the theme of crisis communications more through the lens of an America intertwined with political and business governance. I wanted to demonstrate how our government often parallels a large corporation, like Amazon or Facebook, during times of crises by deflecting blame, communicating ineffectively, and ultimately letting bureaucracy and inaction prevent real, progressive change. To me, the aftermath of the January 6th insurrection was a perfect example of lots of outcry and indignation resulting in few systemic changes. So, I hope you enjoy my capstone project and hopefully learn a few things along the way!