Far-right media outlet faces misinformation probe

Former President Jair Bolsonaro (right) being interviewed by Jovem Pan in late 2021. Photo: Isac Nóbrega/PR

Federal prosecutors launched a civil investigation against the Jovem Pan media group — one of the key players in Brazil’s far-right media ecosystem and which is often described as Brazil’s answer to Fox News.

The broadcaster will be probed for “the dissemination of uninformative content regarding the functioning of Brazilian institutions, with the potential to incite anti-democratic acts.”

Jovem Pan has unabashedly supported Jair Bolsonaro and has crafted its brand around its far-right identity — while often propelling misinformation. The strategy paid off and gave the group one of the largest audiences in the country.

Back in October, the Superior Electoral Court ruled by a 4-3 majority that Jovem Pan (which comprises radio stations and a cable news channel) would have to remove ads linking former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to criminals or saying that he was the best-voted candidate among prison inmates. Its journalists were also barred from commenting on those subjects.

The following month, YouTube demonetized channels belonging to the broadcaster. The tech giant cited “repeated violations of policies against disinformation.” The group is under investigation by election officials for allegedly helping Jair Bolsonaro during the 2022 campaign.

When covering the assault against government buildings on Sunday, Jovem Pan commentators minimized the severity of the events, “trying to justify the motivations of the criminals who invaded and destroyed the headquarters of the three branches of government,” prosecutors say.

“[The Constitution says] power belongs to the people,” one commentator said. Other similar cases happened across the station’s programming.

“Considerations that discredit institutions and the democratic process have been gaining momentum in Jovem Pan’s programming since mid-2022, even before the beginning of the electoral period,” prosecutors stated on Monday. In the aftermath of the assault on Brazil’s capital, Jovem Pan’s chairman Antônio de Carvalho Filho resigned from his position. He remains the group’s largest shareholder.