Episode 173: Who Are "The Nones" and Why Does It Matter? [Part 1] with Dr. Ryan Burge

Since 1972, the General Social Survey, or GSS, has influenced and informed our cultural understanding of the religious landscape in the U.S. A multitude of college students, journalists, media outlets, and peer-reviewed articles and papers have cited the data from the GSS. You've probably seen a graph or two in the newspaper or on line somewhere which featured information from the GSS. 

So what exactly is the survey? How is it conducted? How many people are surveyed? What questions are asked? How accurate is it? How should we interpret its findings? 

On the next two episodes of the Profile we sit down with pastor and assistant professor of political science at Eastern Illinois University, Dr. Ryan Burge, to discuss the GSS and the rise of the non-religiously affiliated. Ryan has become the go-to source for interpreting data from the GSS. Of special interest is a growing classification of Americans with no religious affiliation called "the Nones."  His research has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN, NBC, Vox, 538, BuzzFeed News, the Associated Press, Newsweek, Al-Jazeera, Reuters, Christianity Today, Religion News Service, The Daily Mail, Deseret News, World Magazine, Relevant, and C-SPAN.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

• Watchman Fellowship's 4-page Profile on Atheism by Robert M. Bowman: watchman.org/Atheism
• Watchman Fellowship's 4-page Profile on Agnosticism by W. Russell Crawford: watchman.org/Agnostic
• Ryan Burge's website and book, The Nones: Where They Came From, Who They Are, and Where They Are Going: http://ryanburge.net/

Dr. Ryan Burge is an assistant professor of political science at Eastern Illinois University, where also serves as the graduate coordinator. He has authored over thirty peer-reviewed articles and book chapters alongside four books about religion and politics in the United States. He written for the New York Times, and the Wall Street Journal. He has also appeared in an NBC Documentary, on Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, as well as 60 Minutes which called him, “one of the country’s leading data analysts on religion and politics.” He has served as a pastor in the American Baptist Church for over twenty years and has been married to his wife Jacqueline for over fifteen years. They have two boys - Holden and Reid.

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