Numerous CSU experts available to discuss topics related to 2024 election

Colorado State University has numerous experts available to discuss the 2024 election. They can speak to topics ranging from the dynamics of the local political landscape to international affairs to how to distinguish AI from reality. 

To arrange an interview, please contact a member of the CSU media relations team at [email protected]. 

Martín Carcasson, professor, Department of Communication Studies 

Carcasson is the founder and director of the CSU Center for Public Deliberation, an impartial resource dedicated to enhancing local democracy in Northern Colorado. His research focuses on helping local communities address “wicked problems” more productively through improved public communication, community problem solving and collaborative decision-making. 

Courtenay Daum, professor, Department of Political Science

Daum’s research focuses on the interaction between law and society, including LGBTQ politics, intersectional and feminist legal theories, and organized interest mobilization and litigation in the courts. She can speak to LGBTQ politics, gender and the law, gender and politics, critical race theory, U.S. civil rights and civil liberties, social justice movements and American constitutional law.

Bruce Draper, chair, Department of Computer Science 

Draper, who formerly worked for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), can discuss how to navigate the world of artificial intelligence and misinformation during the election season, as well as how this evolving technology could impact politics for years to come. 

Robert Duffy, professor, Department of Political Science

Duffy’s research focuses on a variety of environmental and energy issues, environmental policy, and the role of organized interests in federal elections. He can also speak to Colorado elections, both state and federal.

Peter Harris, associate professor, Department of Political Science 

Harris teaches classes related to international security, U.S. foreign policy and international relations. His research focuses on U.S. foreign relations in the Indo-Pacific region and, particularly, diplomacy between the U.S. and China. 

Matthew Hitt, associate professor, Department of Political Science 

Hitt studies judgment and decision making in American politics, primarily in elite institutions, especially the U.S. Supreme Court. He is interested in how institutional and external factors influence the choices political actors make, especially at the collective level, in Congress, the judiciary and the bureaucracy. Hitt can also share insights on the Electoral College and the fundamentals of American democracy. 

Nick Marx, associate professor, Department of Communication Studies 

Marx specializes in television studies, media industries, digital media, and American politics and culture. He is co-editor or author of multiple works, including Saturday Night Live and American TV, The Comedy Studies Reader, and “Sketch Comedy: Identity, Reflexivity, and American Television.” His most recent book, “That’s Not Funny: How the Right Makes Comedy Work For Them,” analyzes the cultural and economic clout of libertarian and conservative comedians.

Natalie Pennington, assistant professor, Department of Communication Studies 

Pennington studies the dynamics of communication in a digital world – including how we talk about politics with our family and friends. She can share insight on how to have healthy discourse during this election season, be it in the comments of a Facebook post or in real life. 

Indrajit Ray, professor, Department of Computer Science 

Ray is a cybersecurity expert who can discuss the mechanisms that keep U.S. elections safe. His research is focused on building systems that are more secure against the cyberattacks that could cost the world up to $10.5 trillion per year by 2025. 

Kyle Saunders, professor, Department of Political Science 

Saunders’ primary interests are in American politics: political parties, political behavior, public opinion, national and Colorado elections and public policy. Saunders also studies energy policy and election administration and survey methodology. 

Karrin Vasby Anderson, professor, Department of Communication Studies

Vasby Anderson researches the culture of politics and the politics of culture, examining the ways in which political identity is rhetorically constructed and contested in popular media. She has authored numerous pieces for The Conversation analyzing current political discourse, including the presidential and vice presidential debates.