About Me
I'm a reporter and data analyst who has worked stints at the Wall Street Journal and NBC News. I currently head-up the American Communities Project at Michigan State University's School of Journalism, an effort that uses demographic data to break the nation's 3,100 counties into 15 types of communities.
My work centers on exploring the di
I'm a reporter and data analyst who has worked stints at the Wall Street Journal and NBC News. I currently head-up the American Communities Project at Michigan State University's School of Journalism, an effort that uses demographic data to break the nation's 3,100 counties into 15 types of communities.
My work centers on exploring the divides in America by studying how demographic differences affect community economics, culture and politics. That work was the focus of Our Patchwork Nation, available from Gotham Books.
I’ve been a journalist for some two decades now with time at Newsweek, the Christian Science Monitor and the Project for Excellence in Journalism. I have also lived the freelance life with pieces appearing in outlets ranging from the Washington Post Magazine to The Economist to The New Republic.
While I’m now a card-carrying member of the East Coast Media Industrial Complex (bouncing between DC and New York), my roots are still firmly planted in the Industrial Midwest. I grew up outside Detroit and graduated from Michigan State University, where I majored in journalism and history. I spend one week a month in East Lansing during the school year to run the ACP.
I live in DC with my wife, Christina Ianzito. Please feel free to contact me with any and all questions you might have.