Walter Isaacson is president and CEO of the Aspen Institute. Previously, he was chairman and CEO of CNN and editor of Time magazine. He is the author of Einstein: His Life and Universe (Simon & Schuster, 2007), Benjamin Franklin: An American Life (Simon & Schuster, 2003), and Kissinger: A Biography (Simon & Schuster, 1992), and the coauthor of The Wise Men: Six Friends and the World They Made (Simon & Schuster, 1986). After Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Isaacson was appointed the vicechairman of the Louisiana Recovery Authority. In December 2007, he was appointed by President George W. Bush to be the chairman of the USPalestinian Partnership, a government and private sector effort to provide economic and educational opportunities for the Palestinian people. He serves on many other boards and advisory councils