Lives de quinta-feira do presidente Jair Messias Bolsonaro : os impactos do populismo digital bolsonarista

Abstract

This dissertation explores the strategic use of digital social networks by then-President Jair Messias Bolsonaro (PL), with special attention to his weekly YouTube broadcasts (lives). Through the analysis of these broadcasts, the study examines how Bolsonaro used the lives as a central method to build a direct connection with the audience, bypassing traditional media and creating an uninterrupted and personalized communication channel with his followers. From the perspective of digital populism, this dissertation investigates the political communication of the President and its unfolding in 10 main topics of interest to Brazil. The methodology employed is a combination of text mining and qualitative content analysis, designed to demonstrate to the reader the topics, speech patterns, and engagement strategies used in the lives. This approach allows for a consistent evaluation of persuasion, mobilization, and control techniques, highlighting how the populist narrative is adapted and disseminated in a contemporary digital environment. The results indicate that the lives were used not only as a means of communication but as a central tool to feed his support base, spreading selective information, attacking opponents and democratic institutions, and promoting conspiracy theories. The research shows significant concern for the implications of this practice for the quality of democracy in Brazil, suggesting that Bolsonaro's digital strategy reinforced social divisions, discredited institutions and elections, and promoted a political culture of polarization and hate. It concludes that the lives initiated by President Bolsonaro represent a new paradigm in political communication adopted by the far-right, where technology is used to reshape the relationship between politicians and citizens, with profound consequences for the democratic process. Thus, this dissertation contributes to the field of political studies by providing data on the dynamics of political communication in the digital age between 2019 and 2022 and by drawing attention to the need for robust democratic strategies that can respond to the challenges posed by digital populism.