Research note: Bolsonaro’s firehose: How Covid-19 disinformation on WhatsApp was used to fight a government political crisis in Brazil
Brazil has one of the highest rates of cases and deaths attributed to Covid-19 in the world. Two factors contributed to the high rates: the Brazilian government underestimated the pandemic and a large amount of disinformation was spread through social media. We found that disinformation about Covid-...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Harvard Kennedy School
2021-01-01
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| Series: | Harvard Kennedy School Misinformation Review |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://misinforeview.hks.harvard.edu/article/research-note-bolsonaros-firehose-how-covid-19-disinformation-on-whatsapp-was-used-to-fight-a-government-political-crisis-in-brazil/ |
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| author | Felipe Bonow Soares Raquel Recuero Taiane Volcan Giane Fagundes Giéle Sodré |
| author_facet | Felipe Bonow Soares Raquel Recuero Taiane Volcan Giane Fagundes Giéle Sodré |
| author_sort | Felipe Bonow Soares |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Brazil has one of the highest rates of cases and deaths attributed to Covid-19 in the world. Two factors contributed to the high rates: the Brazilian government underestimated the pandemic and a large amount of disinformation was spread through social media. We found that disinformation about Covid-19 on WhatsApp was associated with political disinformation, mostly composed to support president Bolsonaro during the crisis he faced at the beginning of the pandemic. Our main finding implicates that disinformation on WhatsApp was connected to the far-right political discourse and framed Covid-19 as a political issue rather than a public health issue. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-18T10:44:15Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ef5cb5ad82f5458887cc1bd952408766 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2766-1652 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-18T10:44:15Z |
| publishDate | 2021-01-01 |
| publisher | Harvard Kennedy School |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Harvard Kennedy School Misinformation Review |
| spelling | doaj.art-ef5cb5ad82f5458887cc1bd9524087662022-12-21T21:10:34ZengHarvard Kennedy SchoolHarvard Kennedy School Misinformation Review2766-16522021-01-012110.37016/mr-2020-54Research note: Bolsonaro’s firehose: How Covid-19 disinformation on WhatsApp was used to fight a government political crisis in BrazilFelipe Bonow Soares0Raquel Recuero1Taiane Volcan2Giane Fagundes3Giéle Sodré4Media, Discourse, and Social Networks Research Lab (MIDIARS), Federal University of Pelotas, BrazilCenter for Languages and Communication, Federal University of Pelotas, BrazilMedia, Discourse, and Social Networks Research Lab (MIDIARS), Federal University of Pelotas, BrazilCenter for Languages and Communication, Federal University of Pelotas, BrazilJournalism Department, Federal University of Pelotas, BrazilBrazil has one of the highest rates of cases and deaths attributed to Covid-19 in the world. Two factors contributed to the high rates: the Brazilian government underestimated the pandemic and a large amount of disinformation was spread through social media. We found that disinformation about Covid-19 on WhatsApp was associated with political disinformation, mostly composed to support president Bolsonaro during the crisis he faced at the beginning of the pandemic. Our main finding implicates that disinformation on WhatsApp was connected to the far-right political discourse and framed Covid-19 as a political issue rather than a public health issue.https://misinforeview.hks.harvard.edu/article/research-note-bolsonaros-firehose-how-covid-19-disinformation-on-whatsapp-was-used-to-fight-a-government-political-crisis-in-brazil/conspiracy theoriescovid-19disinformationwhatsapp. |
| spellingShingle | Felipe Bonow Soares Raquel Recuero Taiane Volcan Giane Fagundes Giéle Sodré Research note: Bolsonaro’s firehose: How Covid-19 disinformation on WhatsApp was used to fight a government political crisis in Brazil Harvard Kennedy School Misinformation Review conspiracy theories covid-19 disinformation whatsapp. |
| title | Research note: Bolsonaro’s firehose: How Covid-19 disinformation on WhatsApp was used to fight a government political crisis in Brazil |
| title_full | Research note: Bolsonaro’s firehose: How Covid-19 disinformation on WhatsApp was used to fight a government political crisis in Brazil |
| title_fullStr | Research note: Bolsonaro’s firehose: How Covid-19 disinformation on WhatsApp was used to fight a government political crisis in Brazil |
| title_full_unstemmed | Research note: Bolsonaro’s firehose: How Covid-19 disinformation on WhatsApp was used to fight a government political crisis in Brazil |
| title_short | Research note: Bolsonaro’s firehose: How Covid-19 disinformation on WhatsApp was used to fight a government political crisis in Brazil |
| title_sort | research note bolsonaro s firehose how covid 19 disinformation on whatsapp was used to fight a government political crisis in brazil |
| topic | conspiracy theories covid-19 disinformation whatsapp. |
| url | https://misinforeview.hks.harvard.edu/article/research-note-bolsonaros-firehose-how-covid-19-disinformation-on-whatsapp-was-used-to-fight-a-government-political-crisis-in-brazil/ |
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