Robert P. Jones, Ph.D.

Robert P. Jones (he/him) is the president and founder of PRRI and a leading scholar and a New York Times bestselling author.

Robert P. Jones is the president and founder of Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI). He is the author of the New York Times bestseller The Hidden Roots of White Supremacy and the Path to a Shared American Future (published September 5, 2023), as well as White Too Long: The Legacy of White Supremacy in American Christianity, which won a 2021 American Book Award. He is also the author of The End of White Christian America, which won the 2019 Grawemeyer Award in Religion.

Jones writes regularly on politics, culture, and religion for The Atlantic, TIME, Religion News Service, and other outlets. He is frequently featured in major national media, such as CNN, MSNBC, NPR, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and others. Jones writes a weekly newsletter for those dedicated to the work of truth-telling, repair, and healing from the legacy of white supremacy in American Christianity at www.whitetoolong.net.

He holds a Ph.D. in religion from Emory University, an M.Div. from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a B.S. in computing science and mathematics from Mississippi College. Jones was selected by Emory University’s Graduate Division of Religion as Distinguished Alumnus of the Year in 2013, and by Mississippi College’s Mathematics Department as Alumnus of the Year in 2016. Jones serves on the national program committee for the American Academy of Religion and is a past member of the editorial boards for the Journal of the American Academy of Religion, and Politics and Religion, a journal of the American Political Science Association.

Jones served as CEO of PRRI from the organization’s inception in 2009 to 2022.  Before founding PRRI, he worked as a consultant and senior research fellow at several think tanks in Washington, D.C., and was an assistant professor of religious studies at Missouri State University.

Works By Robert P. Jones, Ph.D.

Across the United States, anger rises, and protests spill into the streets following the murders of several black Americans. This occurs after months of a coronavirus pandemic that has hit black communities especially hard. PRRI

Support for transgender rights has increased in recent years, but the path from overall support to legal action has not been as seamless. A 2019 survey by PRRI found that 62% of Americans said they

Over the course of Donald Trump’s presidency, pundits and pollsters have wondered aloud about what could rupture the president’s support among his key constituency groups. A recent survey released by PRRI suggests that the fallout

As COVID-19 continues to radically transform much of American public life, a debate has emerged about what it could mean for religious pluralism in the United States. On episode two of Reasons Why, we talk

As the nation tackles the economic and social realities of the coronavirus pandemic, a familiar strain of Xenophobia can be observed across multiple societal spectrums. PRRI’s Robert P. Jones‘ new op-ed in Sojourners examines this,

 PRRI is excited to announce the launch of its podcast, Reasons Why. Why the podcast name, ‘Reasons Why’ for an organization that conducts research on religion, culture, and politics? It comes from the praxis

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