David Kinnaman has the ears of America’s Christian community and — what may be more impressive — the attention of secular media. He’s a go-to guy for the Wall Street Journal, CNN and the Los Angeles Times when it comes to identifying trends in the nation’s Christian population.

Kinnaman, 37, is president of the Barna Group, a Ventura, Calif.-based market research firm specializing in the religious beliefs and behavior of Americans and the intersection of faith and culture. George Barna, an accomplished author and seminar speaker, launched the firm in 1984 to provide research and support for churches and ministries. Kinnaman has served the Barna Group for 17 years.

Kinnaman’s landmark 2007 book “unChristian” described the increasingly negative opinions of non-believers toward Christian culture in the U.S. Coauthored with Gabe Lyons, the book has become a staple of pulpits across the nation. Ministers quote from “unChristian’s” troubling findings, stressing the need for people of faith to re-engage with a culture that sees them as hypocritical and irrelevant.

In his latest book, “You Lost Me,” Kinnaman focuses on the more than 60 percent of young people in the U.S. who went to church as teens and dropped out after high school. Surveying young Christians, ages 16 to 29, across the nation, the book identifies three groups — nomads, prodigals and exiles. Nomads leave the church while thinking of themselves as Christians. Prodigals no longer have faith nor connection with the church. Exiles still are connected but are torn between contemporary culture and the church.

Kinnaman and his wife, Jill, live in Ventura with their three children. They enjoy building with Lego toys and visiting Disneyland.