I am Omer Ben Simhon, a scholar in the excellence program of the Smart Institute for Advanced Studies in Communication at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. I am currently pursuing a master's degree focusing on political communication.

With my background in communications consulting, I developed a keen interest in political persuasion, which has become the focus of my research. My thesis examines the causal effect of motivated reasoning on interpersonal persuasion. I had the privilege of presenting my thesis at the ECPR (European Consortium for Political Research) 2023 Political Communication Summer School at the University of Amsterdam.

My thesis supervisor and mentor in the Smart Program is Dr. Eran Amsalem. In future studies, I plan to explore psycho-physiological measures and emotional responses to interpersonal persuasion.

In addition to working on my thesis, I am actively involved in the Experimental Political Communication Lab, funded by the ISF (Israel Science Foundation). In this research group, led by Dr. Eran Amsalem, we study the effects of extreme political rhetoric on individuals' emotions, attitudes, and behavior.

My B.A. degree was completed summa cum laude at Sapir College, where I wrote a seminar on the attitudes and usage patterns of Israelis regarding social media use during weddings. This research was presented at the Communicating conference at the University of Haifa.

Beyond my academic work, I have led the social media accounts of the Israel Sociological Association and founded the social media outlets and visual language of the journal Media Frames. I also serve as a teaching assistant in the Department of Communication and Journalism at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and in the Department of Communication at Sapir College.