Christoph Mergerson is a first-year doctoral student at the School of Communication and Information at Rutgers University. His research interests include innovation and trends in news, media sociology, and media law and policy.

Christoph is a Graduate School-New Brunswick fellow, and a fellow with the Rutgers PreDoctoral Leadership Development Institute (PLDI). He is also a member of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC).

Prior to enrolling at Rutgers, he lived in New Orleans, where he directed marketing for a chamber music festival, and produced a radio show on local arts and culture. He also directed public outreach for a local disaster preparedness agency, where he recruited and trained more than 500 volunteers to assist with the city’s evacuation plan, and taught children about hurricane safety.

Christoph has a bachelor’s degree in political science from California State University, Northridge, and a master’s degree in public affairs from the University of Texas at Austin.

Christoph is a native of metropolitan Washington, DC. In his spare time, he enjoys discovering local arts and cultural attractions, and working as a background actor. He recently appeared on an episode of NCIS: New Orleans.