Gianpietro Mazzoleni is professor of sociology of communication and of political communication at the University of Milan (Italy), where he coordinates the post-graduate courses in communication in the Faculty of Political Sciences. He is member of the editorial boards of the European Journal of Communication (Sage) and of Political Communication (Taylor & Francis), and editor of the Italian scholarly journal Comunicazione Politica (Franco Angeli, Milano). He is presently chair of the political communication division in the International Communication Association (for the term 2004-2006). His research interests focus especially on media policies and political communication.