Coverage on This Year's Exciting Inaugural Event

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This Year's Panelists

Ann Curry (Panel Moderator)

Ann Curry is the co-anchor of NBC's Today, America's number one morning news program. Curry has distinguished herself in global humanitarian reporting, frequently traveling to remote areas of the world to cover under-reported stories. Ann has won numerous accolades and awards over her 35 year career, both for her reporting as well as her charity work.

Samantha Appleton

Samantha Appleton is a photographer concentrating on historic trends and was most recently an official White House Photographer for the Obama administration. Previously, Appleton concentrated on social and political conflict throughout much of the last decade. In addition to her photography, she is currently writing a non-fiction book project on Iraq. www.samanthaappleton.com

Gillian Laub

An ICP graduate, Gillian Laub is a photographer with a love of storytelling and family narrative. Her first monograph, Testimony, is comprised of portraits and testimonies of Israeli Jews, Israeli Arabs, and Palestinians all directly and indirectly affected by the complicated geopolitical context in which they live. In 2007, Laub was awarded Aperture's Emerging Artist Award and is a regular contributor to The New York Times Magazine, among others. www.gillianlaub.com

Mary Ellen Mark

Mary Ellen Mark works primarily in black-and-white film, and is known for her documentary and portrait photography. She also works on film sets and does commercial work. Mark has had over 17 collections published and has been granted numerous awards including three National Endowment for the Arts fellowships and the ICP Infinity Cornell Capa Award. www.maryellenmark.com

Kathy Ryan

As Director of Photography of The New York Times Magazine, Kathy has pioneered combining fine art photography and photojournalism in the magazine's pages. A book she edited featuring 30 years of the magazine's photography was published by Aperture in September 2011. Ryan is also producing videos for The New York Times Magazine website. One of them, 14 Actors Acting was awarded an Emmy last year—the magazine's first.

Stephanie Sinclair

Stephanie Sinclair is a photojournalist known for gaining unique access to the most sensitive gender and human rights issues around the world. Sinclair is a member of the prestigious VII photo agency and a regular contributor to National Geographic and The New York Times Magazine, among others. www.stephaniesinclair.com