Salvatore is currently a PhD Candidate in the Department of Gender, Media, and Cultural Studies, at the Australian National University. His PhD research examines negative campaigning in Indonesia's politics, particularly the rise of 'black campaigning' at national and local elections and how these campaign strategies affect voters by applying mixed-methods approach. Prior to his PhD, he worked as a lecturer in Communication at Atma Jaya Catholic University of Indonesia, Jakarta. He obtained his Master's degree in Communication Studies from Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta. His academic interests are election campaign and journalism.