Shanto Iyengar holds the Chandler Chair in Communication at Stanford University where he is also Professor of Political Science and Director of the Political Communication Laboratory. Iyengar's areas of expertise include the role of mass media in democratic societies, public opinion, and political psychology. Iyengar's research has been supported by grants from the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the Ford Foundation, the Pew Charitable Trusts, and the Hewlett Foundation. He is the recipient of several professional awards, including the Philip E. Converse Book Award of the American Political Science Association for the best book in the field of public opinion,… the Murray Edelman Distinguished Career Award, and the Goldsmith Book Prize from Harvard University. He has authored or edited several books including News That Matters, Is Anyone Responsible? and Explorations in Political Psychology.
Manuel Castells is Professor of Communication and the Wallis Annenberg Chair in Communication Technology and Society at the Annenberg School for Communication, University of Southern California, as well as Professor Emeritus of Sociology and Planning at the University of California, Berkeley, Research Professor at the Open University of Catalonia, and Marvin and Joanne Grossman Distinguished Visiting Professor of Technology and Society at MIT. He is the author of, among other books, the three-volume work The Information Age: Economy, Society, and Culture.Stephen Ansolabehere is Professor of Government at Harvard University and coauthor of The End of Inequality and other books.