Network Information Pro and Contra Bolsonaro's Discourse on Coronavirus

Abstract

This article analyzes the information sources of a corpus made of 135,000 tweets with the hashtags #Bolsonarotemrazão and #OBrasilprecisapararBolsonaro. By analyzing and categorizing the hyperlinks in these messages, the study investigates the information sources used in the construction of opposing discourses about the coronavirus, identifying the types of sources mobilized in both positions. The results indicate that while pro-Bolsonaro discourses prevail in alternative media, those containing hashtags opposing him come from diverse sources, especially traditional media. Drawing on the notion of mediation, the article argues for understanding information sources as an essential part of how the Twitter discussion about the coronavirus pandemic mediated this event for the two different hashtag publics.

Keywords

• coronavirus
• information sources
• mediation
• Twitter