The TV factor

television and the rise of the global far right

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22456/1982-5269.152013

Abstract

This article examines the role of television in the crisis of representative democracy and in the rise of the far right across different national contexts, as well as its impacts on processes of de-democratization. Grounded in the Political Economy of Communication and Media Studies, our comparative analysis focuses on four cases – Donald Trump (United States), Javier Milei (Argentina), Jair Bolsonaro (Brazil), and Viktor Orbán (Hungary). The analysis is organized around the categories of media-built political persona, television format, informational governance, and the transnational circulation of communicational repertoires. The results indicate that, even when adapted to specific cultural and institutional contexts, broadcast television operates as a crucial infrastructure for the advance of the far right in the Americas and Europe, reproducing transnational patterns of political spectacularization and institutional erosion.

Keywords: Television; Far Right; Political Economy of Communication; Political Communication; De-democratization.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biographies

Janaine Aires, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro

Janaine Aires is a professor at the School of Communication at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) and teaches in the Postgraduate Programs in Communication and Culture (UFRJ) and in Media Studies (UFRN). She holds a PhD in Communication and Culture from UFRJ and leads the PEIC – Research Group on Information and Communication Policies and Economics.      

Ederson Costa, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte

Ederson Levi holds a master's degree and is an doctoral candidate from the Postgraduate Program in Media Studies at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte. He graduated in Journalism from UFRN and is a CAPES scholarship recipient.

Claviano Nascimento de Sousa, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte

Claviano Nascimento is a doctoral candidate in the Media Studies Graduate Program at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte. He holds a Master's degree from the Communication Graduate Program at the Federal University of Paraíba. He graduated in Social Communication with a specialization in Media Education from the Federal University of Campina Grande. He is a CAPES scholarship recipient.      

Downloads

Published

2026-09-01

How to Cite

Aires, J., Costa, E., & Nascimento de Sousa, C. (2026). The TV factor: television and the rise of the global far right. Revista Debates, 20(2), 71–106. https://doi.org/10.22456/1982-5269.152013

Issue

Vol. 20 No. 2 (2026): The Far Right in Comparative Perspective - Vol. II

Section

Dossier

License

Names and addresses informed in this magazine will be used only for the services offered by this publication, and will not be made available for other purposes or individuals.