Vanessa Wanyandeh researches the ways in which advancements in the tech industry benefit, harm, and shape society, particularly for marginalized communities. As an intern at Facebook, Vanessa examined the severe implications unmoderated social media has on election legitimacy, particularly for 2020 US congressional and presidential candidates with diverse backgrounds. Her research led her to an unsettling conclusion about modern social media: while it provides a platform for countless underserved communities to share information and raise awareness, it also harbors large quantities of misinformation that further oppress marginalized voices and polarize society overall. As a 2019 Harvard Summer Ventures in Management Program (SVMP) participant and a 2020 IDDEAS@Wharton Scholar, Vanessa discovered an interest in academia. In the future, she hopes to pursue a doctoral degree with a focus on digital sociology and user data collection, specifically centering on how the tech industry deals with conflicts of interest. Currently, Vanessa works as a Strategy Analyst at Accenture in the New York City office. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Economics with a concentration in Business Analytics from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.