Entre a notícia e o ódio: jornalismo, reverberação acrítica e a legitimação simbólica do autoritarismo no Brasil

Abstract

This dissertation critically analyzes the role of the Brazilian media in the symbolic legitimation of hate speech delivered by Jair Bolsonaro during the 2018 presidential campaign. Framed within the field of critical communication theory, the research is based on the hypothesis that, rather than ethically challenging authoritarian statements, the mainstream press operated as a vector of uncritical reverberation, reproducing violent rhetoric without the necessary ethical-normative filters, thus contributing to its normalization within the democratic public sphere. The main objective of the study is to examine how Brazilian journalism, in covering Bolsonaro's hate speech, symbolically reinforced his authoritarian rhetoric, thereby weakening the foundations of communicational citizenship. The topic is contextualized within the political and social landscape that led to Bolsonaro’s rise, marked by institutional crises, extreme polarization, and a media environment vulnerable to market and ideological pressures. The research demonstrates that journalism, despite its historical role as a critical mediator, abdicated its deliberative function at various moments, becoming a secondary actor in the symbolic legitimation of authoritarianism. The methodology adopted was qualitative, based on critical discourse analysis. The theoretical framework mobilizes classic and contemporary authors of critical communication theory, such as Pierre Bourdieu (1997), Jürgen Habermas (1984), Stuart Hall (2003), Gaye Tuchman (1978), Luiz Signates (2011; 2019), Cass Sunstein (2018), and Robert McChesney (2013). These authors provide the foundation for understanding journalism as a field traversed by symbolic disputes and ideological interests, as well as for analyzing media practices in contexts of political radicalization and democratic crisis. The dissertation concludes by confirming the initial hypothesis: Brazilian journalism, by privileging editorial strategies rooted in spectacularization, ritualized neutrality, and market logic, decisively contributed to the symbolic legitimation of Jair Bolsonaro's authoritarian discourse. The analyses demonstrate that the studied articles reinforced Bolsonaro’s image, downplayed the gravity of his statements, and silenced the voices of affected populations such as LGBTQIA+, women, Indigenous peoples, and other vulnerable groups. Therefore, the dissertation highlights the urgent need to reconfigure journalistic ethics and reaffirms the commitment of the academic field to critically examine the role of the media in defending democracy and communicational citizenship.