Explaining Brazil #113: Covid-19 made Brazilian elections more exposed to fake news

Photo: Rafapress/Shutterstock

There’s no doubt that the coronavirus has drastically upended the 2020 elections. At this point, we can’t tell for sure how — or when — this vote will be able to take place.

By design, Brazil’s electoral system puts lots of people in the same place, in line, for several minutes or even hours. And then they will have to touch a voting machine that hundreds of others have already touched that same day. So, the electoral battleground now moves from town halls to the internet — WhatsApp Messenger in particular.

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On this episode:

José Roberto Castro is a journalist covering politics and economics. He is finishing a Master’s Degree in Media and Globalization. Previously, he worked at Nexo Jornal and O Estado de S. Paulo before joining The Brazilian Report.

Background reading:

On March 30, before political actors even began discussing the postponement of the 2020 elections, our Weekly Report raised the main issues with holding the vote in October.
Since early in 2018, we have alerted readers to the trend of WhatsApp turning into Brazil’s go-to political weapon.
Tai Nalon and Ana Rita Cunha, of fact-checking agency Aos Fatos, wrote on The Brazilian Report about the power of fake news in Brazil’s elections.
The Supreme Court has opened an investigation into a far-right fake news ring. Here’s what you need to know.
Luca Belli, a professor of Internet Governance and Regulation, School of Law, Fundação Getulio Vargas, said the 2018 election case proves social media’s danger to democracy.

Explaining Brazil is made by:

Gustavo Ribeiro, editor in chief of The Brazilian Report. He has extensive experience covering Brazilian politics. His work has been featured across Brazilian and French media outlets, including Veja, Época, Folha de S.Paulo, Médiapart, and Radio France Internationale.
Euan Marshall, editing. Euan is a journalist and translator who has lived in São Paulo, Brazil since 2011. Specializing in Brazilian soccer, politics and the connection between the two, his work has been published in The Telegraph, Al Jazeera, The Independent, among others.

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