Consulting specialists wasn’t sufficient

Six years ago, Sahil Chinoy was a novice at The New York Times, positioned at the crossroads of journalism and data analytics. At the age of 23, he served as a graphics editor at the prestigious publication.

Analyzing data, crafting visuals, and weekly discussions with specialists about political ideology, police misconduct, or facial recognition technology: It was a dream role for an inquisitive mind.

Yet it was insufficient. “I’d aspire to read the foundational paper,” Chinoy expressed. “You’re perusing this research during your commute, on the subway, and feeling as though, ‘I simply lack the energy to truly grasp this — I’d need to engage with this full time.’”

In hindsight, Chinoy recognizes how he was propelled forward — and frequently redirected — by his unique curiosity: regarding systems, abstractions, and functionality.

He arrived at UC Berkeley in 2013 as a hopeful aeronautical engineer, but the allure soon faded. “When I attended my inaugural class, all the other students were eagerly anticipating working in the machine shop,” he chuckled. “And I was like, ‘Oh, no: The part of this that intrigues me is conceptualizing how to build things.’”

Consequently, engineering transitioned to physics, which subsequently gave way to economics. Following his tenure at the Times, he enrolled in Harvard’s Economics Department as a doctoral candidate. He is poised to graduate later this month.

In papers for the National Bureau of Economic Research, he and his co-authors have examined extensive datasets seeking sociopolitical trends that shape American society, including the impact of “zero-sum” thinking on American policy inclinations and how military service in World War I propelled Black veterans into the NAACP.

Throughout this journey, Chinoy may have gained from the winding path he took to Harvard, leveraging advanced mathematics, an interest in American politics, and the journalistic drive for timely investigation.

Chinoy’s unique methodology has drawn admiration from faculty collaborators and mentors.

Stefanie Stantcheva, his primary advisor, is herself an emerging talent; she recently received the John Bates Clark Medal for the top American economists under 40.

In written remarks, Stantcheva conveyed it’s been “a delight collaborating with Sahil. He is incredibly inquisitive about new matters, while also engaging with them at a profound level.”

Vincent Pons from the Business School commended the “curiosity and determination” Chinoy contributed to their paper on community affiliations and political alignment.

“Sometimes, there are very large questions that intrigue you, but it’s often unclear how to study those inquiries,” Pons noted. “Sahil is someone who — once he identifies a significant question — will locate the data and devise the method necessary to yield a persuasive answer.”

For Chinoy’s recent job-market paper, which identified “considerable segregation” based on ideology in American workplaces, this entailed merging two vast digital databases — voter registrations and the social networking site LinkedIn. The research produced a political-economic perspective on over 34 million Americans, likely the largest dataset of its kind ever compiled.

He and co-author Martin Koenen discovered that not only are there politically conservative and liberal firms, but voters are willing to forfeit some compensation to work for a company aligned with their values — or to steer clear of one that isn’t.

Chinoy acknowledges that the intricate relationship between work and politics had undergone decades of economic examination long before he arrived at Harvard. “Much of what I am pursuing aims to tackle some of these longstanding inquiries using contemporary econometric methods and extensive data.”

Three papers later, the research has assisted him in developing a nuanced understanding of personal politics in the workplace.

“In this study, I oscillate between believing that politics has become a defining aspect of identity for many, influencing various decisions,” Chinoy mentioned. “Conversely, the labor market also involves individuals seeking remuneration, who want to provide for their families. And when one job offers less than another — even if it aligns better with your beliefs — that consideration holds significance as well.”

Currently, that’s the primary question captivating Chinoy: what he refers to as “the interaction between political identity, political behavior, and several economic forces,” such as the labor market, immigration trends, and racial coalitions.

This interest has spurred yet another shift in Chinoy’s professional journey. Trained as an economist, he’s set to join the political science department at Stanford in 2026.

Meanwhile, he has secured a postdoctoral position at Yale’s Program on Ethics, Politics, and Economics, which will keep him in Cambridge for an additional year with his partner, a public defender.

But before that, Commencement awaits, which the Chinoys — his parents, his brother, and a few cousins — will attend ahead of a celebratory getaway to the Berkshires.

When asked if he can offer any insights for our polarized political landscape, Chinoy remains — characteristically — in a questioning frame of mind.

“We began gathering reliable public opinion data in the mid-20th century, around the 1950s. Thus, we can trace the escalation of polarization from what might have been a notably serene period in American politics, or at least, one with less overt conflict between various factions. Perhaps that was the exception.”