I am a Ph.D. student at the Department of Communication at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. My dissertation project focuses on the cultural logic of podcast listening. It explores how and why people listen to podcasts, how podcast creators construct their listening subjects and which actors and technologies participate in the datafication of podcast listening, placing them within a wider context of the attention economy.
I hold a Master’s degree in communication and a Bachelor’s degree in Art History and Communication, both from the Hebrew University. In my Master’s dissertation I developed the concept of ‘networked anonymity’ that offers a new way of understanding anonymity in the age of real-name social media. My fields of interest include: philosophy and theory of media and communication, history of media technologies, digital culture and digital research methods. Outside the academic world, I have worked as a technology journalist and a digital copywriter, both driven by my fascination with ways in which people interact with technologies.
Besides working on my dissertation, I produce the Smart Institute’s podcast, The SIP.
Research Interests
- Podcast studies
- Philosophy and theory of media and communication
- Digital culture
Selected Publications
- Baden, C., & Sharon, T. (2021). Blinded by the lies? Toward an integrated definition of conspiracy theories. Communication Theory, 31(1), 82-106.
- Sharon, T., & John, N. A. (2019). Imagining an Ideal Podcast Listener [Special issue]. Popular Communication 17(4), 333-347
- Sharon, T., & John, N. A. (2018). Unpacking (the) Secret: Anonymous social media and the impossibility of networked anonymity. New Media & Society 20(11): 4177–4194.
Awards and Prizes
- 2019-2023: The President’s Scholarship for Outstanding PhD Students, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
- 2019: Smart Institute scholarship for PhD Students, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
- 2019: The Blum-Kulka excellence research award, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
- 2019: Student Travel grant, International Communication Association (ICA)
- 2019: Travel grant, Political Communication Division, International Communication Association (ICA)
- 2018-2019: Honored for excellence in teaching, Faculty of Social Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
- 2018: The Department of Communication and Journalism scholarship for outstanding doctoral students, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
- 2018: Erasmus+ grant, European Union graduate student exchange programme
- 2018: Travel grant, Popular Communication Division, International Communication Association (ICA)
- 2018: Travel grant, Department of Communication and Journalism, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
- 2018: Gilbert scholarship, given to academic sponsors at the Equal Opportunity Unit, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
- 2017: The Department of Communication and Journalism scholarship for outstanding doctoral students, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
- 2015: The Department of Communication and Journalism scholarship for M.A. thesis research, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
- 2014–2015: Honored for excellence in teaching, Faculty of Social Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
- 2012–2013: Dean's award for outstanding achievements, Faculty of Humanities, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem