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Meta Chooses Sides in Brazil's Election
Published 6 hours ago
Description
In the first round of voting on October 4, Trump-ally, far-right presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro came in two points ahead of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silvia.
Lula supporters have been responding both in the streets and online. And they have been closing the gap, but it’s an uphill battle. Big Tech—and in particular Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp—have been helping to lift Bolsonaro’s presence online over that of President Lula.
Meta temporarily suspended Lula’s campaign page on Facebook, blocked more than 1,000 pro-Lula accounts, and allowed its algorithm to benefit Bolsonaro while hindering Lula’s campaign. Meta admits that there has not been parity in its treatment of the candidates but it blames mechanical glitches.
Meanwhile, a Meta AI chatbot admitted to one graduate student that “Meta indeed has a clear political and economic interest in the election of Flávio Bolsonaro.”
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is a close political ally of US President Donald Trump. Flávio Bolsonaro has promised that if he is elected, he will join Trump’s Counter Cartel Coalition and open up Brazil’s rare earth minerals to the United States. That is something that Big Tech companies are interested in, because those minerals are necessary for their hardware, AI, and data centers.
Brazilians have protested at Meta’s headquarters in São Paulo. And they have turned to creativity to try to break the bubble of the algorithm and spread their message to precious undecided voters, who can make or break this election.
Meta and its secret algorithm have become the latest tool of US intervention in Latin America. It is not a branch of the US government. But it’s working in tandem.
In this episode, host Michael Fox speaks with Brazil-based journalist Brian Mier. They discuss where things are now, what’s at stake, and in particular look at the role that Meta is playing ahead of the second round of the Brazilian elections on Sunday.
Brian Mier has master’s degrees from Loyola University Chicago and the University of London. He’s lived in Brazil for more than 30 years and he co-hosts a weekly Portuguese-language web TV program called Globalistas on Brasil 247. Mier is an editor of Panamerican Dispatch, which was launched ahead of the Brazilian vote.
Guests:
Resources About Meta in Brazil:
Lula supporters have been responding both in the streets and online. And they have been closing the gap, but it’s an uphill battle. Big Tech—and in particular Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp—have been helping to lift Bolsonaro’s presence online over that of President Lula.
Meta temporarily suspended Lula’s campaign page on Facebook, blocked more than 1,000 pro-Lula accounts, and allowed its algorithm to benefit Bolsonaro while hindering Lula’s campaign. Meta admits that there has not been parity in its treatment of the candidates but it blames mechanical glitches.
Meanwhile, a Meta AI chatbot admitted to one graduate student that “Meta indeed has a clear political and economic interest in the election of Flávio Bolsonaro.”
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is a close political ally of US President Donald Trump. Flávio Bolsonaro has promised that if he is elected, he will join Trump’s Counter Cartel Coalition and open up Brazil’s rare earth minerals to the United States. That is something that Big Tech companies are interested in, because those minerals are necessary for their hardware, AI, and data centers.
Brazilians have protested at Meta’s headquarters in São Paulo. And they have turned to creativity to try to break the bubble of the algorithm and spread their message to precious undecided voters, who can make or break this election.
Meta and its secret algorithm have become the latest tool of US intervention in Latin America. It is not a branch of the US government. But it’s working in tandem.
In this episode, host Michael Fox speaks with Brazil-based journalist Brian Mier. They discuss where things are now, what’s at stake, and in particular look at the role that Meta is playing ahead of the second round of the Brazilian elections on Sunday.
Brian Mier has master’s degrees from Loyola University Chicago and the University of London. He’s lived in Brazil for more than 30 years and he co-hosts a weekly Portuguese-language web TV program called Globalistas on Brasil 247. Mier is an editor of Panamerican Dispatch, which was launched ahead of the Brazilian vote.
Guests:
Resources About Meta in Brazil:
- Meta Censors Over 1,080 Accounts Supporting Lula During Brazilian Elections
- Whistleblower Exposes Meta, Bolsonaro, and Cerimedo Election Meddling Partnership
- Meta Acknowledges the Reduced Reach of Lula’s Profiles
- Beyond Meta AI, Other AI Platforms Steer Content Against Lula
- Meta Discovers New Tool to Sabotage Lula’s Campaign
- Meta AI Admits and Explains Pro-Bolsonaro Manipulation
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