Trevor Noah in his Fresh Air interview with NPR high priestess Terry Gross talked about how he observed language as a powerful cultural assimilation tool. He watched and learned from his mother, who got out of tight situations by forming bonds with others by using the same language as her aggressor.

Some highlights from the interview:

Communication is more important than your grasp of language. You know, can you communicate effectively with a person?
I realized you've got to be careful in deciding what your intention is. Are you using language, you know, as a flourish, or are you trying to communicate as effectively as possible with another human being?

In communications and public relations sometimes we forget this, communicating includes intention, how do you want the person to feel or behave after reading or hearing what you have to say? And as we have seen in this year's election, speaking simply and repeating one's self are powerful forms of communication.