Politics, Media and Religion: De São Paulo Progressive Activism Among Brazilian Evangelicals Through Facebook and Twitter

Magali Cunha Universidade Metodista Politics, media and religion: de São Paulo progressive activism among Brazilian evangelicals through Facebook and Twitter

Política, mídia e religião: o ativismo progressista entre evangélicos brasileiros por meio do Facebook e do Twitter

Política, medios y religión: el activismo progresista entre evangélicos brasileños a través de Facebook y Twitter

C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 217 Resumo Este trabalho tem por objetivo estudar a emergência de um ativismo político evangélico progressista no Brasil, para além do partidário e de campanhas eleitorais, expresso em mídias digitais. Identificar quem são esses ativistas e como se dá a sua ação, particularmente no Facebook e no Twitter, é o objeto do estudo. Para desenvolvê-lo, foi tomada como base teórica estudos anteriores da autora do trabalho e de cientistas da religião, para a compreensão do quadro da participação política de evangélicos brasileiros no tempo presente. Recorreu-se também às abordagens que relacionam comunicação e política e a uma compreensão do sentido de ativismo e de ativismo digital. Com base em mapeamento de ativistas evangélicos nas duas mídias sociais, realizado em pesquisa prévia, o estudo detém-se na lista de 22 evangélicos influenciadores que dedicam-se ao ativismo político, para traçar um perfil de sua atuação e demonstrar os conteúdos que privilegiam em suas postagens. Verifica-se que as mídias sociais são um espaço intenso de atuação deste grupo, que é invisibilizado nas grandes mídias, o que delineia o caráter de contra-hegemonia à sua ação. Palavras-Chave: Mídia. Ativismo Digital. Evangélicos.

Abstract This work aims to study the emergence of a progressive Protestant political activism in Brazil, beyond partisans and electoral campaigns, expressed in digital media. Identifying who these activists are and how their action takes place, particularly on Facebook and Twitter, is the object of the study. In order to develop it, previous studies by the author of the work and of religious scientists were taken as a theoretical basis for understanding the context of the political participation of Brazilian Protestant in the present time. Ap- proaches that relate communication and politics and an understanding of the sense of activism and digital activism are also referred. Based on a mapping of evangelical activists in the two social media, conducted in previous research, the study emphasizes the list of 22 evangelical influencers who dedicate themselves to political activism, to draw a profile of their action and demonstrate the contents that they accentuate in their posts. It is verified that the social media is an intense space of action of this group, that is invisible in the great media, which delineates the character of counter-hegemony to its action. Keywords: Media. Digital Activism. Protestants.

Resumen: Este trabajo tiene por objetivo estudiar la emergencia de un activismo político evangélico progresista en Brasil, además del partidario y de campañas electorales, expresado en redes sociales digitales. Identificar quiénes son esos activistas y cómo se da su acción, particularmente en Facebook y Twitter, es el objeto del estudio. Para desarrollarlo, fue tomada como base teórica estudios anteriores de la autora del trabajo y de científicos de la religión, para la comprensión del cuadro de la participación política de evangélicos brasileños en el tiempo presente. Se recurrió también a los enfoques que relacionan comunicación y política y a una comprensión del sentido de activismo y de activismo digital. Con base en el mapeo de activistas evangélicos en los dos redes sociales digitales, realizado en investigación previa, el estudio se detiene en la lista de 22 evangélicos influyentes que se dedican al activismo político, para trazar un perfil de su actuación y demostrar los contenidos que privilegian en sus posturas. Se verifica que las redes sociales digitales son un espacio intenso de actuación de este grupo, que es invisibilizado en los grandes medios, lo que delinea el carácter de contrahegemonía a su acción. Palabras clave: Medios. Activismo Digital. Evangélicos.

Submissão: 22-10-2014 Decisão editorial: 15-08-2017

218 C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 Preliminary notes Studies in Communication/Media and Religion are expanding in Brazil, since it is no longer possible to understand religions in the contemporary world without relating them to communication and the media, nor is it possible to approach media without taking into account its relation with religions (HOOVER, 2014). A considerable number of researches since the 1970s (see Brazilian Commission for Research Impro- vement/CAPES Bank of Theses) are dedicated to understanding the process of production of religious programming, that is, the presence of religious groups, mainly Christian churches, in the media, such as editorial entrepreneurs, media owners or space holders in TV programming channels and radio stations. Substan- tial analyzes in the form of master’s theses and doc- toral dissertations, some disseminated through books and articles, have contributed to consolidate this field of study. They have also contributed to break with the predominant positivist perspective in the formation of the Brazilian educational system, which sought to place religion in the academy “in its proper place”, that is, as belonging primarily to studies in the field of anthropology, sociology, perhaps psychology. The interface media, religion and politics is a field of studies still open in the area of Communication in

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Brazil. The intensification of the presence of Christians in political parties, especially since the 1986 Consti- tution Congress, connected to the increase of their occupation of media spaces, mainly of the Protestants in great growth in the country since the 1990s, has been an object of greater attention by politics and religion scientists. It has also generated more “acade- mic curiosity” for communication researchers. In the research carried out by the author of this work, systematized in a book (CUNHA, 2017), we have verified at least four sociopolitical and cultural dynamics related to the participation of religious Protestants in the Brazilian political process in the last decades, which are important basis for the discussion that follo- ws in this article: (a) Protestants are the most evident religious group in Brazil in the news media, when there is attention to the subject media, religion and politics. This is largely due to the great numerical and geographic growth of the group, which has occurred in the last two decades, and their intense presence in traditional media, digital media and political parties1. (b) The Protestant Caucus in the Parliament (PCP) was consolidated and reached, in the 2015-2018 ad- ministration, a bloc of 88 deputies elected in 2014 and three senators re-elected in 2010; (c) The news media and religious media highlight a hegemony of conservative ideology among Protes- tants, both in the coverage of the guidelines of the PCP and in the pronouncements of Protestant leaders on national politics.

1 This article refers to “Protestants” in Brazil all believers of the Christian religion who do not belong to Roman Catholic and Orthodox confessions. 220 C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 Política, mídia e religião: o ativismo progressista entre evangélicos brasileiros por meio do Facebook e do Twitter

(d) Progressive Protestant groups, always a minority in the context of the segment, have sought forms of re-articulation and recomposition against the conservative advance in politics in the period initiated in 2014 that culminated with the impeachment of Presi- dent Dilma Rousseff in 2016. These elements make up the framework that pla- ces Protestants as the leading religious group in the political process underway in Brazil at the present time. A new aspect (object of this study) is added to this list: the emergence of a Protestant, non-institutionalized political activism with a strong presence in digital media. Therefore, this study seeks to contribute to the reflection on the political process involving Protestant and media in the country. The objective is to study the recent phenomenon of the emergence of a Protestant activism in Brazil, in addition to partisan and electoral campaigns, expressed in digital media. A specific objective is to draw a profile of who are the progressive activists who act through Twitter and Facebook. In order to reach these objectives, the article is based on theoretical studies of religion scientists and also of the author of this work, to understand the context of political participation of Brazilian Protestants in the present time and its relationship with communication. The work also resorted to approaches that relate communication and politics as well to understandings of the meaning of activism and digital activism. The identification of the progressive media users present on Facebook and Twitter and the study of their practices are based on a mapping of evangelical activists. This mapping was carried out in a research done by the author of this article, in the year of 2016, in the period related to the final phase of the President Dil-

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ma Rousseff’s impeachment process and its developments.

1. Progressive Protestants in Politics and in the Media In spite of the religious culture that feeds conservative hegemony among Protestants in relation to politics, especially institutionalized politics through the PCP (ALVES, 1979; BAPTISTA, 2009; BURITY, 2010; FRES- TON, 1994), progressive expressions among Brazilian Protestants are not new and gain more power from the 1930s through the formation of the Protestant Con- federation of Brazil (CEB) (BITTENCOURT FILHO, 1992). Important social projects with governmental partner- ships and study conferences dealing with cutting-edge issues in the religion-society relationship gave potency to the action of CEB and also visibility to the Protestant presence in Brazil beyond the isolationism fueled by the predominant pietist and fundamentalist theologies (CUNHA, 2007). This process established a pattern for Protestant progressivism in the country: combating economic and cultural inequality; defense of civil rights, of minorities, of the environment; defense of the secular state and of religious freedom. During the civil-military dictatorship in the country (1964-1985) the commitment to democracy was reaffirmed by the leaders and groups formed by CEB. Persecution inside and outside the churches weake- ned that movement but did not eliminate the perspective of the dialogue between faith and politics built in the previous decades and allowed the survival of leaders and their ideals and the formation of new groups (CNV, 2014, TRABUCO, 2017).

222 C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 Política, mídia e religião: o ativismo progressista entre evangélicos brasileiros por meio do Facebook e do Twitter

Joanildo Burity (2010) evaluates that these progressive expressions are configured as “marginal”, because they have always caused distrust of the segments on the political left of the country, they have been the source of debauchery of the conservative Protestant majority and they are neglected by the coverage of the major media. However, the researcher recognizes, actually, progressive Protestants in Brazil are “an undeniably important minority.” The Progressive Protestant Movement (MPP), in the 1990s, played an important role in calling attention to the issues of ethics in politics and responsible participation in the electoral process (FRESTON, 1994). It was also an important interlocutor of Protestants with politicians and left-wing parties. The cooling of the MPP’s activities in the 2000s gave room for more visibility of the Protestant Cau- cus in the Parliament (PCP) and for alliances between conservative Protestants and the government of President Lula, from 2003 on, under the strategy of the Workers Party (PT) seeking closer ties with the religious segment (MARIANO, 2016). This has resulted in the strengthening of the presence of Protestant conservative in institutional politics, the growth of PCP, the appointment of Protestants to Federal Cabinet, and the occupation of political spaces by Protestant leaderships in States and Municipalities. The election of the Pentecostal MP Eduardo Cunha to the Presi- dency of the Federal Chamber in 2015, represented the culmination of this process. Burity notes that the key issue that defines boun- daries between conservative and progressive Protes- tants is

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state regulation of the body, particularly sexuality: abor- tion, homosexuality, and genetic manipulation. (...) The second clash relates more to the balance of accounts between Protestant faith and sociocultural pluralism, espoused by various forms of non or post-Marxist left influenced by the civil, student, feminist, ecological and gay rights movements of the years from 1960 onwar- ds, which gained visibility since the late 1980s (BURITY, 2010, on-line).

Communication that unites religion and politics has long been an element that has placed conservati- ves at an advantage over progressives in the struggle between control and liberation of bodies, defense of faith/freedom of belief, secular state, fundamen- talism and sociocultural pluralism. The language of faith assumed by the traditionalist and conservative groups, which finds a response among the believers in the congregations (MACIEL, 1971), is added to the occupation of broadcast media and the search for visibility and space in the public sphere by these same groups (CUNHA, 2017). The resonance achieved by the ideological affinity with the mainstream media, which gives voice to this large portion of Protestants in the news and entertainment programs, amplifies this communication. With the enhancement of the capacity of social communication by digital media in the 2000s, this whole process has been even more widespread, with the production of audios and videos that are posted on Internet pages. These productions find a wide audien- ce, process that intensifies when disseminated (some viralized) by social media. In past decades, alternative printed materials and group activities (training and capacity-building meetings), small space on radio programs run by sym- 224 C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 Política, mídia e religião: o ativismo progressista entre evangélicos brasileiros por meio do Facebook e do Twitter pathizers were the forms of communication that were possible to the progressive Protestants. No impacts on mainstream media. The difficulty of developing a language that appeals to the imaginary of the believers of segment seems to have remained throughout the decades (CUNHA, 2007). However, in the 2000s, the same ability to communicate through digital media became available to this group, making it possible for a wider reverberation of their ideas and actions.

2. Protestant political activism: a new element It is in this whole context that a new element oc- cupies a significant space: Protestant political activism. It ceases to be an action aimed only at corporate electoral campaigns, through the activity of electoral cables belonging to or supported by churches (CUNHA, 2017). This study affirms political activism as a non-institutional action in the public sphere, driven by individuals, in and from their social networks, in the exercise of pressure on political, economic and socio-cultural holders of power, motivated by the desire to change a certain order in force or a factor that generates tensions and conflicts (TILLY, 1978; MELUCCI, 1986; JOR- DAN, 2002). This action can take place both passively (civil disobedience) and actively, in a non-violent way (public protests, occupations, strikes, boycotts), or violent (depredations and/or attacks on private and/or public properties). Activism can also take the form of indirect actions (petitions, electoral processes, legal appeals) (JORDAN, 2002). Protestant political activism gained prominence in the year 2010, revealing the engagement of religious leaders and believers, whether during election periods

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- not only for votes capture but also for rejection and opposition to candidates - whether around guidelines. Among guidelines, we can mention the Presidency of the Commission on Human Rights and Minorities of the Federal Chamber assumed by Protestant MP Pastor Marco Feliciano in 2013, the project to reduce the age of criminality (2015) or the impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff (2016). This activism appears in presencial events in stre- ets such as the annual March for Jesus, promoted by the (Pentecostal) Reborn in Christ Church, and specific demonstrations called by leaders or organizations such as the March for the Family in the Capital Brasilia (2013), and the public acts of the Protestant Front for the Rule of Law. It also occurs at a distance, through multiple expressions on the internet, with special emphasis in the social media. The development of these forms of Protestant political activism occurs from 2002 on, when the PCP gains strength beyond Parliament, also occupying Federal Cabinets, and intensifies from 2010 with the strong opposition of Protestant conservative to the campaign of Dilma Rousseff to the Presidency of the Republic, through the Workers’ Party (CUNHA, 2017). After the so-called “Protests of June 2013” (CAS- TELLS, 2013) and its developments, with the strengthening of conservative political movements and new conservative guidelines, the election of the most conservative National Congress since 1964 in 2014 (DIAP, 2014) and the inauguration of Pentecostal MP Eduardo Cunha as President of the Federal Chamber in 2015, which gave a more conservative tune to the national political framework, Protestant groups aligned to it, gained visibility and became more publicly exposed. At

226 C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 Política, mídia e religião: o ativismo progressista entre evangélicos brasileiros por meio do Facebook e do Twitter the same time, progressive Protestants were provoked to express themselves. For example, the Protestant Front for the Rule of Law arises during the impeachment process of Dilma Rousseff (CUNHA, 2017). In this context, it is possible to identify the emergence of a Protestant political activism that happens very especially in and from digital spaces, object of this work. However, before exposing the methodolo- gical trajectory and the results achieved, it is necessary to establish the basis for the understanding of the phenomenon of digital activism, since it is a central element of the study undertaken.

3. Understanding digital activism The Spanish sociologist Manuel de Castells (2013) is one of the most outstanding theorists and pioneers in understanding what he called “Society in Network”, in which the internet configures a new form of communication and a new culture. This means a change in everyday interpersonal relationships, in work relations, in relation to time and space, and in ways of doing politics. It is the configuration of what is then understood as the “digital public sphere” or “virtual public sphere”. In this context, the renewal of the public sphere, to which Castells referred, is concretized in the realiza- tion via internet of almost all forms of political action by the civil sphere:

[...] contact and pressure on elected representatives to the formation of public opinion, from engagement and participation in discussions on public affairs to member- ship in civil society parties or movements, from demons- tration to mobilization, from interaction with candidates to the donation to partisan funds or civil organizations, the intervention in electronic forums on the matter of C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 227 Magali Cunha

the deliberation of the political society to the intervention in online plebiscites (GOMES, 2005, 64).

There is the emergency of what is now identified as non-institutionalized digital political activism. This type of activism arises from the context of the popularization of the internet (1990s), through “a series of direct action movements with specific social and communicative practices, realizing new forms of social conflicts” (FELICE, 2013, p 53). Initially named “cyber-activism” (an USA expression), the phenomenon concerns new forms of organization and direct political action articulated through content published on the Internet, first to act in the boycott of the consumption of certain products, then in the convocation for occupations, demonstrations and protests in defense of human, civil and environ- mental rights. With its popularization, other terms arose to define the new practices: “online activism,” “electronic defense,” “cyber-activism,” “net-ativism”. Massimo di Felice systematizes them as social action in network and in the networks and explains: …it is not simply the incorporation of the Internet into the communicative processes of activism but in- cludes the way in which this communicative techno- logy has substantially transformed activism itself and the concepts of participation, democratic space, collective identity and political strategy, implying a significant change in the forms of social action by cyber-activist movements (2013, page 54). Juan de Gracia (2015) also focuses on the phenomenon of digital activism and identifies that it car- ries the motivations of classical activism (pressure on groups that exercise political, economic and sociocultural power, desire to change a given order or an 228 C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 Política, mídia e religião: o ativismo progressista entre evangélicos brasileiros por meio do Facebook e do Twitter element that generates tensions and conflict) but brin- gs changes in the culture of political action. Part of these changes is not only the transition from traditional media to digital media, but also: the digital activists will define their own action objectives, decide freely on what causes they want to be involved, and they will do so following guidelines that are far removed from the standard conceptions of the policy. In addition to the new tools and techno- logies that allow consumers to archive, comment and appropriate media commentaries, the emergence of a wide range of subcultures that broadly exceeds the definition of classical social movements, and that is based on a production in network based on “do it yourself”, a spirit that promotes a certain dissociation or disloyalty compared to the classical social movements. (GRACIA, 2015, p. 87) At this point, this article will focus on the object of this study: progressive Protestant political digital activism.

5. The trajectory of this study In order to understand the profile and propositions of progressive Protestant political activists in the digital environment, this study is based on the mapping of activist Protestant profiles on Facebook and Twit- ter, undertaken in a research, conducted in the year 2016, during the months of August and September, published in book (CUNHA, 2017). These two media were selected because the first is the most accessed social media in Brazil, according to the Brazilian Media Research 2015 (BRAZIL, 2014); and the second, despite occupying the sixth place among the most accessed social media in Brazil, is the most popular social media

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among political elites and opinion makers. The metho- dology trailed the following steps: (1) creation of a base of reference-characters identified in the news monitoring conducted by the Media, Religion and Culture (MIRE) research group, of the Graduation Program in Social Communication of the Methodist University of São Paulo, published in the blog Media, Religion and Politics (www.metodista. br/midiareligiaopolitica). 43 characters were identified, between individuals and groups; (2) identification of accounts of these reference- -characters on Facebook and Twitter to verify the frequency of posts with political content (level of activism) and subsequent survey of other profiles in interaction that can be classified as key influencers (other network activists ) through the monitoring and profile analysis apps Twittonomy and Quintly. 101 new characters were identified; (3) survey of public pages on Facebook and Twit- ter profiles that articulate Protestantism and politics, with a respective minimum number of 500 (random) and 200 (average of profiles based on research) followers/likers and upda- ting frequency, based on keywords and their combinations around themes on Protestantism and politics. Another 10 characters were been identified. From these stages, a list of 141 profiles was established among individuals, groups/organizations identified as Protestants, acting through Facebook (45) and Twitter (96), with postings related to politics, calling for discussion and expression of opinions on issues of

230 C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 Política, mídia e religião: o ativismo progressista entre evangélicos brasileiros por meio do Facebook e do Twitter national politics, campaigns for elections and pressure on political leaders. In a fourth stage of the research, 35 profiles were selected from among those listed, classified as influen- tial Protestant political activists, based on the following criteria: 1 - emphasis on non-institutionalized political activism: (a) exclusion of the five politicians listed: former MP Eduardo Cunha, MP João Campos, MP Pastor Marco Feliciano, President of the Social Christian Party Pastor Everaldo, Senator Magno Malta; (b) exclusion of the four religious media identified: Gospel Prime; Gospel Truth; Gospel +; Guiame Website. 2 - Creation of a ranking of influencers: (a) on Twitter (combination of elements from the reports generated by the monitoring and profiles analysis app Twitonomy, such as number of followers, frequency of posts about politics, level of interaction and self-identification as activists); (b) in Facebook (combination of elements from the reports generated by the monitoring and pages analysis app Karma, such as number of followers/fans/likers, total reactions, comments and shares, page performance index, frequency of posts on politics). Protestant individuals who carry out political activism in social media act in their churches as pastors (eight) and lay (seven). There is a balance as to the form of attachment to the religious group. There is one gospel singer and two missionaries among the laity. When considering the Protestant churches and traditions to which these individuals are affiliated, there is also a balance between the historical groups (six) -

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with a greater number of Baptists (four), followed by Methodist (one) and Reformed (one) - and Pentecos- tals (five), being one from the Assembly of God and four from independent churches. There is one profile linked to an independent confession, and another three without identification of affiliation. These 35 profiles were classified by level of action (producers, third-party content reproducers and third-party content accrediting) and by ideological alignment (conservative and progressive). By conservative, this work understands that individual or group that defends “the maintenance of the existing political system and its modes of functio- ning, presenting itself as counterpart of the innovative forces” (BOBBIO, MATTEUCCI, PASQUINO, 1998, 242). The progressive profile, which in some approaches to political sciences can be identified as liberal, is referred here to the opposition to conservatism, or to the promotion of socio-economic and cultural innovations necessary for the sustainable development of societies that implies in facing economic inequalities, gender, racial, ecological, in defense of civil and environmen- tal rights and in the reconstruction of socio-political values (BOBBIO, MATTEUCCI, PASQUINO, 1998). About the religious field, it is important to note that an ideological alignment is based on theological principles that form the political theology of the individual or group (SANTOS, 2013). An analysis of the content of the postings of the 35 profiles surveyed, in August and September 2016 (by hashtags used, emphasized themes and profiles/ links more reproduced and accredited), showed 13 profiles of conservative alignment and 22 profiles of progressive alignment. All conservative alignment pro-

232 C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 Política, mídia e religião: o ativismo progressista entre evangélicos brasileiros por meio do Facebook e do Twitter files are on Twitter. Progressive Protestants act more on Facebook - there are 18 - while only four favor Twitter.

6. Who are and what do progressive Protestant influence in digital media From the mapping described above there is the following list of 22 progressive Protestant activists acting on Facebook and Twitter: Interaction (sum of the average of retweets + average of favorite tweets) 48.10 37.52 30.00 11.64 Tweets on policts on one month (Aug/Sept 2016) In % 62.22 57.91 27.27 88.83 Number of Tweets in one month (Aug/Sept 2016) 135 4.35 day 278 8.97 day 220 7.10 day 197 6.57 day Followers 20,900 53,720 46,200 6,126 Church/ Movement Historic Baptist Pentecostal Independent Historic Baptist Pentecostal Independent Action as Protestant Pastor Pastor Pastor Pastor Profile edupastoral gondimricardo ariovaldo elienaijr Table 1 – Protestant progressive influencer political activists in Twit - (4) ter 2017 CUNHA, Source - C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 233 Magali Cunha 1.800 4.200 5.700 8.600 Total reactions, commentaries and shares 38 40 100 97 Page performance index (engagement + growth) % 20 20 24 45 Posts on politics in one week 33 4.71/ day 26 3.71/ day 26 3.71/ day 28 4/day Posts in one week 6,881 14,928 1,927 4,383 Number of Likes/ Members Organization – ecumenical association Community - with the intention of gathering left- wing Christians Community – Iniciative by a group of Protestants in the defence for a democractic stage and for the constitutional order. Community – Protestant voters for Dilma Rousseff Registered identity of the page conselhonacionaldeigrejas CristaosDeEsquerda frentedeevangelicos evangelicoscomdilma Pages CUNHA, 2017 Source – CUNHA, Table 2 – Protestant progressive influencer political activists in Facebook – Pages (4) 234 C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 Política, mídia e religião: o ativismo progressista entre evangélicos brasileiros por meio do Facebook e do Twitter

Table 3 - Protestant progressive influencer political activists in Fa- cebook – Profiles (14)

Number of Posts on Action as Church/ Friends/ Posts in one politics in Profiles Protestant Movement Followers week one week

20 Zebarbosajr Lay Independent 8,181 36 2.85/day

Independent 5 ronilso.pacheco Lay Fale Network 8,800 7 0.71/day

Historic Baptist 5 clemir.fernandessilva Pastor Fale Network 4,703 5 0.71/day Historic 23 anivaldo.padilha Lay Methodist 4,468 30 3.28/day

Historic Baptist 25 caio.marcal Missionary Fale Network 3,833 36 3.51/day

nancy. Historic 12 cardosopereira Pastor Methodist 3,603 17 1,71/day

Not identified 8 isabella.g.miranda Lay Fale Network 3,218 8 1.14/day

Historic Baptist 9 morganaboostel Lay Fale Network 3,078 21 1,28/day

Historic 15 paulo.saraiva.731 Pastor Baptist 2,662 28 2 ao dia

Historic Presbiterian 37 daniela.sanchesfrozi Lay Fale Network 2.595 54 5.28/day

Historic 19 romi.bencke Pastor Lutheran 2,204 23 2.71/day Historic Baptist 8 flavioconrado Lay Fale Network 1,814 15 1.14/day

Historic 14 lusmarinacg Pastor Lutheran 1,228 14 2/day

Historic 8 odja.barros Pastor Baptist 1,192 8 1.14/day

Source – CUNHA, 2017

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A greater number of content producers (12) are identified, followed by accrediting (7). The number of content reproducers (3) is smaller. These elements reveal that Protestant progressive digital activists have an active participation in the content development they post in their spaces on Twitter and Facebook. Among the links and profiles most reproduced and accredited by these activists there are individuals identified as progressive and alternative media and/ or recognized among the left-wing: cartacapital; VIO- MUNDO; emirsader; dilmabr; redebrasilatual; brasil247; ivanvalente; Gondinricardo; pablovillaca; Diário do Centro do Mundo; Carta Maior; rudaricciofficial; Mí- dia Ninja; Blog do Sakamoto; Esmaelmorais.com.br; O Cafezinho. The emphasis on the following hashtags allows the classification of these Protestant activists as progressive: #golpe; #panamapapers; #assufragistas; #cunha- nacadeia; #aeciomaiscitadoque#moralismoranzinza; #PelaDemocracia; #ChegadeGolpes; #QueroMulhe- resNosDebates; #QueroMariaPorDignidade; #Feminis- mo; #SomosMuitas; #ResisteIsidora; #JustiçaUrbana; #rirpranãochorar; #golpecontraademocracia; #não- háoquetemer; #alutaémeulugar; #égolpe; #ForaTe- mer; #TemerGolpista; #nãovoteinesseprojetogolpista. In these profiles there are contents that highlight themes such as: criticism of the National Congress, impeachment of Dilma Rousseff as a threat to democracy, classification of impeachment as a coup in democracy, selectivity in the fight against corruption by the competent bodies, defense of democracy and of the rule of law, condemnation of homophobia, ra- cism, rape and all forms of violence against women, valorization of feminism and the role of women in the

236 C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 Política, mídia e religião: o ativismo progressista entre evangélicos brasileiros por meio do Facebook e do Twitter social process, defense of Petrobras as a national pe- trol company, justice for Palestine. As part of the analysis of the linkage of the 22 profiles to the group classified as progressive, were also identified brands of ideological affinity. For this purpose, a list with 49 keywords was prepared. The keywords were identified in the contents of each profile during the study period (August and September 2016). The posts of each profile that contained the keywords (some grouped by similarity) were selected and, from these contents, organized by type, a grou- ping of terms (cloud) was created. In a next step, the general meaning attributed to each of the prevailing terms in the profiles was studied, which is reproduced below (CUNHA, 2017): Aécio / PSDB - corrupt politician and party protected by public prosecutors, Supreme Court and the media Corruption / Corruption - evil that affects the whole political class, maintained by selective punishment on the part of public prosecutors, Supreme Court and the media Crime - the crimes of Pentecostal MP Eduardo Cunha and Social Democratic Party politicians cannot go unpunished Cunha - Pentecostal MP Eduardo Cunha is being bene- fited by the selectivity of justice and investigations by public prosecutors. Public prosecutors have fulfilled their role to facilitate accusations against President Dilma Rousseff, provoking the impeachment. Democracy – a political system that is threatened by the actions of MPs in approving the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff and approving projects against rights conquered in the last decades Right-Wing – a political segment strengthened in power that has advanced on many political fronts Dilma - honest woman who suffered injustice with her impeachment. She paid the price of wrong alliances and mistakes made by her party – the Workers Party. C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 237 Magali Cunha

Education / Party - conservative assumptions about education in the country, especially the No-Party Scho- ol project and national budget cuts, impoverish the quality of education Elections / Election - participation in 2016 Municipal elections with voting on progressive candidates is key to containing the conservative advance Left-Wing – political segment that made many mistakes when it was in Federal and Legislative power. Needs to review practices. State - the Rule of Law is threatened by the selective actions of the Law system in Brazil Coup - Dilma Rousseff’s impeachment was a parliamentary-judicial-mediatic coup Government – President Michel Temer’s government is illegitimate Impeachment - an attack on democracy and on the Rule of Law Lula – former President who has been the target of the selective justice by public prosecutors and a Judge. He must acknowledge his mistakes in taking the Workers Party leadership when he had power in the Federal government PEC / PEC of Shame - (PEC 241) Proposal for Constitu- tion Ammendment, by President Temer, is an iniquitous proposal for favoring capital over the social rights conquered in Brazil in the field of education and health, in particular PMDB – Democratic Movement Party, a treacherous and corrupt party, with which the Workers Party should not have allied Power - Federal power was taken by a parliamentary- -judicial-mediatic coup Politics – system that is corrupted by power games. It shall be a point of attention of Protestants who are in search of justice People – the one who suffer most in the whole process lived in national politics

238 C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 Política, mídia e religião: o ativismo progressista entre evangélicos brasileiros por meio do Facebook e do Twitter

Rio - elections in Rio de Janeiro may be opportunity to the left with the relative success of Socialism and Freedom Party Health - PEC 241, proposed by the Temer government, will bring terrible effects on public health by reducing public expenditures in this field Temer - illegitimate President, one of the authors of the coup against democracy Vote - political “weapon” in search of justice and of the guarantee of rights

The emphasis here is on speeches that focus on classical themes of progressive movements such as justice, defense of rights, defense of democracy and of the popular participation by vote. Themes of progressive emblematic discourses in relation to outstanding characters of the process lived in Brazil 2016, such as Dilma Rousseff and Lula (support) and Aécio Neves and Michel Temer (critics) are also highlighted. Denunciations regarding the work of the Democratic Movement Party (PMDB) (which took federal power in 2016 after Dilma’s impeachment) and projects re- sulting from the Proposal for Constitution Amendment 234, decreasing public expenditures on health and education, are also discursive marks of progressive Protestants.

Final considerations All this dynamics described here allows the consideration that the relationship between Protes- tants, politics and media is a phenomenon that invol- ves the recent moment of Brazilian politics. As mentioned, traditional media has worked to construct a view that Protestants place themselves in the public sphere as an organically articulated bloc, electing conservative spokesmen and references and giving C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 239 Magali Cunha

them visibility. The very image of a “Protestant Caucus in the Parliament” conveys a notion of homogeneity that hides the differences. Digital evangelical political activism is a new component in this framework and a prominent element in the process of political participation of this religious group. There is a hegemony in the religious field (in the meaning of SANTOS, 2011, as something inevitable, without any alternative) of the conservative Protestant current in Brazil, which is reflected in the political party space and in the traditional religious and non-religious media spaces. In this context, the media action promotes the invisibility of other religious groups, and Pro- testants themselves, with a progressive approach. This strand is not new: as mentioned in this study, it has historical expression. Since the early decades of the 20th century, progressive Protestant political actions have been developed, albeit with little emphasis on the prevailing conservative theological profile among the segment. These articulations were consolidated in the 50s and 60s, gained more visibility in the movements of resistance to the civil-military dictatorship, recomposed in the period of redemocra- tization and mark the identity of a Protestant minority of importance recognized in the present. Activists identified with progressives do not achieve the same level of conservative reach: they do not have media celebrities; they do not have the amount of financial resources; their theology and language are in conflict with the conservative profile that characterizes the Brazilian Protestants; they are invisibilized by the mainstream media. Digital media has been the most expressive space for these activists

240 C&S – São Bernardo do Campo, v. 39, n. 3, p. 217-243, set./dez. 2017 Política, mídia e religião: o ativismo progressista entre evangélicos brasileiros por meio do Facebook e do Twitter that become alternative communication practices that guarantee them some voice, articulation among them and interlocution with progressive segments of media and other political segments. The discovery that the major action of progressive Protestants is played on Facebook is an important element for future outspread research. As pre- viously mentioned, Facebook is the most accessed social media by Brazilians who have access to the internet, 83%, according to data collected on 2015. On the other hand, Twitter, despite being the most accessed by a lowest number of internet users (5% of respondents of the survey, 6th in the ranking), is the most popular social media among political elites and opinion makers (BRASIL, 2014). There is an indication here that conservative Protestant activists choose to communicate with a narrower group, but identified as more politicized. Progressives, however, are the majority of Protestant activists, but they favor a more popular space rather than reaching out to opinion makers. The character of minority in the religious field makes the political actions of progressive Protestant also counter-hegemonic actions in relation to the Pro- testant public itself.

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