Global Populism: Its Roots in Media and Religion| “Brazil Above Everything. God Above Everyone.” Political-Religious Fundamentalist Expressions in Digital Media in Times of Ultra-Right Populism in Brazil

Abstract

This article aims to (1) describe the basis of the relationship between religion and politics in the ultra-right government of Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil, locating it in the context of the advances of political-religious fundamentalisms in Latin America; (2) analyze the place of media in this relationship, with special attention to the religious discourse disseminated by Jair Bolsonaro in his social media accounts. The theoretical framework on fundamentalisms, populism, and the relationship between media, religion, and politics gives support to the method of content analysis applied to Bolsonaro’s social media posts during the period of Easter 2020. With these bases, the article is developed in three parts: (1) The advance of political-religious fundamentalisms in Latin America; (2) Political-religious fundamentalisms and populism under the Jair Bolsonaro government in Brazil; (3) The populist communication of the “Messiah” Bolsonaro.