News and Political Information Consumption in Brazil : Mapping the First Round of the 2018 Brazilian Presidential

In Brazil, there are rising concerns over computational propaganda and the political polarization it may cause. In this data memo, we analyze data about political news and information shared over Twitter in the period leading up to the 2018 Brazilian presidential election. We find that: (1) Brazil’s political discourse on social media is highly partisan, with leading candidate Jair Bolsonaro dominating the conversation on Twitter; (2) accounts associated with Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Fernando Haddad hashtags show the highest level of high frequency tweeting; (3) Brazilian Twitter users are sharing more professional political content on Twitter than junk news — the highest proportion in all the elections we have studied; (4) while Bolsonaro supporters spread the widest range of known junk news sources, Lula da Silva and Haddad supporters accounted for the highest volume of shares. INTRODUCTION Brazilians are considered some of the most enthusiastic users of social networks and messaging apps in the world, and social media networks have become a key platform for citizens to share news and political information. As in other parts of the world, the type of news and information voters are exposed to on social media platforms ranges from professional news content to emotionally-driven and polarizing content. Sources spreading deceptive or false information can often mimic established news reporting, with actors across the political spectrum leveraging misinformation to capture attention. During times of heightened public interest, social media algorithms may promote and spread conspiratorial material over accurate information. This has raised concerns about the manipulation of public opinion, especially in politically sensitive moments such as elections and referenda. 2 In Brazil, there is increasing debate about the impact of misinformation on polarization and spread of violence, both online and offline. For the first time in the country’s electoral history, Brazil witnessed the hacking of popular political Facebook groups, and the physical persecution, threat and harm to social media political leaders as well as celebrities. According to the 2018 Reuters Digital News Report, online platforms remain the main source of news within urban Brazil, with 66% of survey respondents reporting to use social media, including 14% who say they use Twitter, for news-seeking. The Brazilian Centre of Telecommunication and Information Technologies (Cetic.br) reports that 50% of the population use the Internet to read news, and 68% of Internet users have shared some kind of content online in 2016. WhatsApp has also emerged as a major and relevant source of news. With more than 120 million active users in Brazil, the country accounts for 10% of the world’s subscribers, according to data provided by the company. In the context of Brazil’s polarized political environment, we analyze sources of news and information shared over social media in a 10 day-long period leading up to the 2018 Brazilian presidential election. Our research questions are: (1) Which candidates led the conversation over Twitter and were associated with high frequency tweeting? (2) What types of content are being shared on Twitter? (3) How did different audience groups share junk news on Twitter? THE BRAZILIAN GENERAL ELECTION AND THE MEDIA The first round of the general election is scheduled to be held in Brazil on October 7, 2018. Brazilians will elect the president, governors, and members of the National Congress and of state assemblies. The president, vice-president and state governors are elected through a two-round system. Should any candidate fail to win a majority vote in the first round, a second round with the two most-voted candidates is scheduled for October 28, 2018. Brazil has a proportional presidential representative system, where the party landscape consists of multiple smaller parties and larger coalitions. The president is the head of state and is elected for a four-year term, with the possibility of one re-election for a second successive term. For 13