Abstract

In this article we discuss whether and to what extent the information that circulated on WhatsApp during the 2018 presidential elections could characterize a populist narrative, and its relationship with representative democracy and connective action. Based on an analysis of the content circulated in the messenger’s public groups, we showed that these presented elements that converge both to characterize the populist narrative and the e-campaigns. However, we found an anti-systemic and hateful approach, of an anti-pluralist nature, in which the people are incorporeal and the leader is evoked, especially in the content linked to Bolsonaro, which suggests new nuances of authoritarian populist discourse in contemporary times.

Keywords:
Populismo; Digital campaigns; WhatsApp; 2018 elections.