Evan Ringel

Evan Ringel is assistant professor of media law in the Department of Communication at Appalachian State University. His research sits at the intersection of the First Amendment, emerging technologies, education, civil rights, and state-level regulation. He is particularly interested in looking beyond questions of constitutionality, often coupling traditional legal scholarship with social science research methods to provide a multifaceted examination of contemporary legal issues. Ringel received the Harry W. Stonecipher Award for Distinguished Research in Media Law and Policy in 2026 for his article with Amanda Reid and Lorcan Neill, “Nerd Harder: A Typology of Techno-Legal Solutionist Logics in Child Online Safety Laws.” A former professional musician, Ringel graduated from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro with a B.M. in Jazz Trombone. He holds a J.D. from the University of North Carolina School of Law and an M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina Hussman School of Journalism and Media. He lives in Hillsboro, N.C.