Populism and the Media in Brazil: The Case of Jair Bolsonaro

Abstract

After seven presidential elections that had a centre-left candidate facing a centre-right adversary in the second round, Brazil experienced radical change in the 2018 run-off. An extreme-right candidate, Jair Bolsonaro, from a very small party, won the first round of the elections. This chapter analyses the rise of Bolsonaro focusing particularly on his relationship with big media. In doing so, the authors test the pertinence of applying the concept of populism to the case of Brazil. Following a brief historical overview, João Feres Júnior and Juliana Gagliardi examine how the politics of media corporations changed over recent years, creating a strong antipolitical sentiment which was successfully appropriated by Bolsonaro’s populist agenda. The final section reflects upon the chapter’s contributions to understanding the Brazilian case and also the academic discussion on the concept of populism.