Some personal news. Starting August 1, I will be joining the Danforth Center on Religion and Politics at WashU (@CtrRelPol) as a Professor of Practice. I think it's a perfect step for my career as Senator Danforth envisioned the Center to be a place for public engagement around religion and politics. That's where I see myself headed in the next stage of my career.

62% of white evangelicals report watching Fox News in the last 24 hours. It's 16% of atheists. Black Protestants, Muslims and Hindus really love CNN. MSNBC is popular with atheists, agnostics, and Black Protestants. No one watches PBS.

The discussion of the religiosity of young adults is complicated. It's certainly the case that both young men and young women have become a lot less Christian over time. But is it different with Gen Z? Women: 52% Christian/34% None Men: 53% Christian/37% None

It's staggering to consider how widespread education has become in the US in the last century. Among people born in the 1900s, 6% had a parent with a college degree. For those born in the 1950s, it was 22%. Among those born in 2000 or later, it's HALF.

"If one parent stays home to focus on the family, which is a better option?" Almost NO ONE says it's the father. It's <1%. 40% said mother. 59% said it didn't matter. Here's that broken by religious tradition. Muslims and evangelicals most likely to say "mother"

The stereotype is that educated families raise secular kids. The GSS disagrees. Never-attenders and weekly churchgoers are now equally likely to have a college-educated parent — a gap that was real and measurable as recently as 1980.

Even among people who never attend religious services, a significant majority still believe in God or a Higher Power (~70% in 2024). It was ~80% in the 1970s. 23% of never attenders say that they have a certain belief in God. 18% are agnostic 13% are atheist.

In 1975: 90% of the Republican party were white Christians. 75% of the Democrats were white Christians. In 2024: 73% of Republicans were white Christians. Down 17 pts. 32% of Democrats were white Christians. Down 42 pts.

.@jonestony and I asked the "nones" how often their parents went to church when they were kids. Mothers were much more likely to be weekly attenders compared to fathers (~15 point difference). But the vast majority of nones didn't grow up in houses where both went often.

Over 90% of all Americans believe that people have a soul or spirit in addition to their physical bodies. The groups that buck this trend Jews: 75% Agnostics: 69% Atheists: 33%

Among white voters from any faith tradition, Trump did better in 2024 compared to McCain in 2008. There's not a single combination of educational attainment and church attendance where the Democrats have gained ground with white people who are not "nones."

Does life experience make us less trusting? Boomer trust was the same from 1972-2010. Then it noticeably dropped. Gen X is at the same spot now as they were in 2000. Millennials? Down ~5 points. But look at Gen Z. The sample size is small, but the line is straight down.

College students were asked: "Should your school allow a speaker who believes that transgender people have a mental disorder." The most likely to say "definitely not"? The non-religious at 55% The most permissive? Latter-day Saints and Protestants

We asked people about happens when they die. Of course, religious folks were more likely to say things like: I will go to a place of peace I will reunite with loved ones. But on the statement, "I fear what happens after I die" The responses were exactly the same.

We did a survey of the membership of the Freedom from Religion Foundation. Then we did a random sample survey of non-religious folks. The FFRF folks are more likely to feel discriminated against because of their beliefs than the average none.