Depredador(a)

Jair BOLSONARO

Presidente de Brasil desde 2019

Depredador desde que llegó al poder

Brasil, 111°/180 en la Clasificación Mundial de la Libertad de Prensa 2021

Dear [Name of Candidate],

I am writing to ask you what you plan to do to defend the First Amendment, freedom of the press, and the fundamental rights of journalists to practice their profession freely in what has become an increasingly hostile environment for information and news providers.

The United States, which enshrines press freedom in the First Amendment of its Constitution, is currently witnessing a drastic decline in media freedom. On June 28, one of the most horrific attacks on press freedom in the United States occurred when five employees, including four reporters, were killed at the Capital Gazette newspaper in Annapolis, Maryland. According to the US Press Freedom Tracker, which comprehensively documents press freedom violations in the US committed by national, state, and local authorities as well as private individuals, 33 journalists were arrested, 43 were physically attacked, and 15 seizures of journalists’ equipment occurred in 2017. In one of these incidents, Rep. Greg Gianforte physically assaulted a Guardian journalist the night before his state’s election. While covering the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, journalists were impersonated on social media, impeding their ability to accurately investigate the facts and disseminate information which could be vital to preventing a similar tragedy. This hostility towards the press not only risks compromising the American public’s right to be informed through journalists’ reporting, but can also degrade the public’s trust in the media itself.

This is not a partisan issue; it is a fundamental right that impacts every American no matter their politics. Journalism is at the crux of our democracy, and communities everywhere rely on journalists to provide them with information that is essential to their daily decision-making processes. It was local investigative journalist Curt Guyette who broke the story about Flint, Michigan’s lack of access to clean water in 2014, prompting years of class-action lawsuits, protests, and subsequent federal assistance to the city in order to try to resolve the crisis. Reporters Megan Twohey, Jodi Kantor, and Ronan Farrow publicized sexual assault allegations against influential Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein in 2017, leading to the ubiquitous and powerful #MeToo movement which brought decades of sexual abuse and harassment across multiple industries to light.

Yet freedom of the press in the US is currently in dire need of congressional support. It is our civic duty as one of the world’s leading democracies to uphold principles that support and protect the rights of journalists so that they may hold those in power accountable and ensure an informed and engaged community.

If you are elected, what do you plan to do to protect this utterly essential component of our democracy? What are your plans to protect the public’s right to be informed through a free and independent press?

Sincerely,
[Your name]

Hello, my name is _______ and I am from [city, state].

I’m calling to let you know that [candidate/representative]'s stance on freedom of the press is extremely important in my decision to vote. I feel that this is not a partisan issue, but a fundamental right that impacts every American no matter their politics.

I have become increasingly concerned with the growing climate of hostility for journalists in this country, and I would like for [candidate/representative] to publicly address what they will do to defend press freedom if [he/she] is elected.

Thank you.

Freedom of the press is suffering in the US. @[yourcandidate] if you are elected to serve in Congress, what are your plans to protect journalists and our right to be informed? Will you #DefendPressFreedom?

Democracy depends on a free and independent press and its ability to hold those in power accountable. [@yourcandidate] will you take measures to protect journalism and the First Amendment? Will you #DefendPressFreedom?

In June, four reporters were murdered in an appalling targeted attack on the Capital Gazette and freedom of the press. [@yourcandidate] what will you do to address the growing threat to journalists in this country? #DefendPressFreedom

Press freedom is in steady decline in the US. I want my representative to defend the work of journalists as well as my right to be informed. [@yourcandidate] if you are elected what will you do to protect a free press? #DefendPressFreedom

Journalists play a crucial role in our democracy by keeping us informed and holding those in power accountable. And yet in the US, attacks on journalists are becoming more common, undermining the media's role and creating opportunities for government overreach, the erosion of press freedom, and impeding our right to be informed. I’m contacting my candidates and encouraging them to defend press freedom during their midterm election campaign. Join me at DefendPressFreedom.com

A free press is essential to our democracy. Communities everywhere rely on journalists to report on our government’s actions and hold public figures accountable, providing us with the information we need to make decisions every day. And yet physical, verbal, and online attacks against journalists in the US are increasing at an astonishing rate. I’m contacting my candidates and encouraging them to defend press freedom during their midterm election campaign. You should too. Read more at DefendPressFreedom.com

Press freedom is declining in the US at an alarming rate. Physical, verbal, and online attacks against journalists have increased drastically in the last two years. As the US midterm elections approach, we must remind our congressional candidates that journalists play a crucial role in our democracy by keeping us informed and holding those in power accountable. I’m contacting my representatives and encouraging them to defend press freedom during their midterm election campaign. Join in and help me spread the word at DefendPressFreedom.com

MÉTODO DE DEPREDACIÓN: insultos, humillaciones y amenazas groseras

Jair Bolsonaro, que se autoproclamó “candidato antisistema”, dejó de lado a los medios tradicionales y ganó terreno gracias a las redes sociales, un espacio en el que su discurso y sus ideas encontraron un eco considerable. Desde que asumió el cargo, el trabajo de la prensa brasileña se ha complicado en extremo. Su marca personal consiste en insultar, denigrar, estigmatizar y humillar a los periodistas demasiado críticos. Para él, la prensa "no sirve para nada" y no es más que "rumores y mentiras constantes". Su retórica bélica y sucia se ve amplificada por su círculo cercano y por unas bases organizadas. Desde 2018, el presidente, su familia y su entorno han perfeccionado un sistema extremadamente bien engrasado. En las redes sociales, ejércitos de simpatizantes y de robots difunden y amplifican ataques destinados a desacreditar a la prensa, a la que se presenta como enemiga del Estado.

OBJETIVOS PREDILECTOS: las mujeres periodistas, los especialistas en política y Globo

Uno de los objetivos favoritos de la familia Bolsonaro es el canal Globo, al que describen como "televisión funeraria" porque tuvo la osadía de informar a los brasileños sobre la progresión de la epidemia de Covid-19 y del número de muertes relacionadas con el virus. En 2020, RSF registró más de 180 ataques contra el grupo, al que acusan de querer “traicionar” y “destruir” el país. El canal se ve amenazado con no renovarle su frecuencia de emisión en 2022. Sobre el terreno, los periodistas, especialmente los responsables de cubrir la presidencia frente al palacio de la Alvorada en Brasilia, también suelen ser atacados, humillados y agredidos, a veces con violencia, por los partidarios de la familia Bolsonaro. Los ataques sexistas y misóginos contra mujeres periodistas también son otro relevante distintivo del bolsonarismo. Igual que Patricia Campos Mello, muchas mujeres periodistas han sido víctimas de agresiones sexistas y tienen que trabajar en un ambiente nauseabundo, a merced del linchamiento digital de los simpatizantes del presidente.

DISCURSO OFICIAL: la grosería

Algunos medios son “peores que la basura, porque la basura se puede reciclar”. “"Brasil está en quiebra, yo puedo no hacer nada. (...) Yo quería cambiar la tabla del impuesto sobre la renta, pero ha pasado lo de este virus alimentado por la prensa que tenemos aquí, esta prensa sin carácter". (6 de enero de 2021).

“La prensa es la responsable del pánico en el país y de la pérdida de vidas durante la pandemia, una vergüenza nacional”. (7 de enero de 2021, durante una intervención en directo en Facebook, transmitida a través de la cuenta de la Presidencia).

Los periodistas pueden irse "a la mierda a casa de su p... madre" y "meterse latas de leche condensada por el c..." (27 de enero de 2021.)

“Sinvergüenzas, infames, no sois patriotas. (...) ¡El periodismo que hacéis está podrido, corrupto, no tenéis escrúpulos! ¡No servís para nada! ¡No servís de nada! ¡Solo publicáis mentiras!" (Fragmento de un video de 24 minutos transmitido el 29 de octubre de 2019 en el que Jair Bolsonaro se dirige al Grupo Globo).