A frequent writer and speaker on trends, leadership and performance management, Ben has directed hundreds of surveys examining consumer trends and citizen behaviour. From 1987-1992 Ben worked in Ipsos Mori’s private sector business on corporate reputation and consumer research, working for companies like Shell, BAE Systems, Sky TV and IBM. Since 1992 he has worked closely with both Conservative and Labour ministers and senior policy makers across government, leading on work for Downing Street, the Cabinet Office, the Home Office and the Department of Health, as well as a wide range of local authorities and NHS Trusts. Ben is a fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences and serves on advisory groups at the Kings Fund, Institute of Public Policy Research (IPPR) and the Social Market Foundation (SMF), and is a Trustee at the Centre for London. He is also a commissioner on the Resolution Foundation's Intergenerational Commission.

Chris' research focuses on lifestyle freedoms, prohibition and policy-based evidence. He regularly appears on TV and radio discussing social and economic issues, is the editor of the Nanny State Index and author of four books: ’Selfishness, Greed and Capitalism’ (2015), ‘The Art of Suppression’ (2011), ‘The Spirit Level Delusion’ (2010) and ‘Velvet Glove, Iron Fist’ (2009). He has also written more than a dozen reports for the Institute of Economic Affairs including ‘Drinking, Fast and Slow’, ‘The Proof of the Pudding: Denmark’s Fat Tax Fiasco’, ‘Cheap as Chips’, ‘Sock Puppets’ and ‘Closing Time: Who’s killing the British pub?’. He's also quite witty on twitter.

Fergus Bell is an experienced journalist, editor and leading expert in digital newsgathering and the verification of user-generated content. He is also a prominent advocate for higher industry standards relating to the ethical uses of UGC and social media. In 2013, Fergus co-founded a committee for the Online News Association bringing together news leaders from across the industry to explore ethical issues related to social media and UGC, later launching the ONA Social Newsgathering Ethics Code with support from CNN, AFP, BBC, The Guardian and others. He played a major role in setting the current industry standards on verification and is a founding member of the First Draft News Coalition.

Baroness Onora O'Neill of Bengarve is amongst the most distinguished and influential scholars and philosophers of her generation. Originally from Northern Ireland, she is well known for her work on human rights, trust and communication ethics, having published no less than 14 books. Her Reith Lecture for the BBC in 2002 argued that we should think more sceptically about rules and regulations that try to enforce accountability and transparency. She is a Professor of philosophy at the University of Cambridge, but also plays an active role in public life; as a member of the House of Lords since 1999, and previously as Chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission and President of the British Academy.

Diane Kenwood is editor of the most successful and highest selling weekly magazine in the mature mainstream women’s market. Diane began her career in television and radio, moving from production to presenting – she has fronted programmes on BBCs 1 and 2, Sky News and Channel 4, and hosted her own two hour daily radio programme. She started working in magazines at the BBC and was offered her first job as features editor on Having a Baby. A stint on Good Housekeeping preceded her first editor’s role on the Marks & Spencer magazine. After five years as editor, Diane launched a new magazine aimed at the 50+ market, and edited Heyday until it moved to a rival publisher. Following a brief tenure at the Guardian working on the development of a b2b magazine, Diane was invited to edit Time Inc.'s flagship mature mainstream weekly title.

As Editorial Associate for the Thomson Foundation, Helen Scott is responsible for designing and project managing work in the developing world, building capacity in the media, and has just concluded a five year project in Sudan. She also works for the Royal Television Society and Sky. She formerly worked in national newspapers as a journalist and as a factual programme executive for ITV where she was responsible for a 50 strong award winning department, making current affairs, documentaries and factual entertainment. Helen is a board member for the Sheffield International Documentary Festival and sits on the Royal Television Society’s education committee.

SkyTG24 is at the forefront in fact checking activity; highlighting 'fake news' on YouTube and other social media. Renato has been correspondent from Jerusalem (2005-11) where he reported on the Arab Spring and major Middle East conflicts. He is now in charge of reporting foreign news including special programs on major foreign policy events.

Samuel Santana is one of the country’s leading documentary editors. His credits include the RTS-winning and BAFTA-nominated series '24 Hours in A&E', where he later co-created the 'Cut Your Teeth' edit scheme – training new editors who later went on to cut C4’s most successful 9pm series. He edited stand-out singles such as 2016’s Cutting Edge film 'The Gun Shop'; 'The Murder Workers' and BAFTA nominated and Broadcast Award-winning 'Katie: My Beautiful Face'. Sam has worked across a long and notable list of credits, including '24 Hours In Police Custody'; 'SAS: Who Dares Wins', and BAFTA nominated 'The Tribe'. Additional credits include '25 Years of Question Time', 'Charles at 60: The Passionate Prince', 'Elgar: The Man behind the Mask'. Most recently Samuel has completed work on 'Extremely British Muslims', and Sue Bourne’s 'A Time To Live'.