A sociologist specializing in urban settings and immigrant communities, Tony brings a global perspective to his writing for Christianity Today. He draws on many years of research at Columbia University in New York City, where he is chairman of the Seminar on Contents and Methods in the Social Sciences. Tony also heads up the International Research Institute on Values Changes and its sister organization, the Research Institute for New Americans. With Anna Karpathakis, Tony edited the book New York Glory: Religions in the City (New York University Press, 2001).

Tony has covered white-collar crime for CT, as well as presidential politics, international religious liberty, urban affairs, and religion in public education. This broad experience prepared Tony for understanding the growing role for Christians in Silicon Valley, which is just emerging from a historic downturn with thousands of layoffs and a sharp increase in corporate bankruptcies.

According to Tony, several elements of Silicon Valley make it an unusual place. For example, one Silicon Valley obsession is being connected and available 24/7. One executive he interviewed had four telephone lines at home, plus a fax line, two cell phones, two e-mail accounts, and (at work) another four telephone lines, ...