Paper short abstract:

This research is investigating the centrality of fake images in Brazilian presidential elections of 2022. Religiously charged fake images are in the middle of a pictorial war where both sides seem to suggest an ugly battle between the good and the bad, inflicting moral panic among electors.

Paper long abstract:

Brazilian presidential race of 2022 has mobilized emotions beliefs and strategies of disinformation that took Brazilian population by storm. Fake narratives, montages and false images have been a constant in Brazil, ever since Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil´s far right president, was elected in 2018. In 2022, those narratives have seen a great deal of intensification and false or misleading images of all kinds have been spreading every day on social medias. These coordinated actions were meant to create moral panic especially because Luis Ignacio Lula da Silva, the popular Worker´s Party, left wing leader was back into politics after being acquitted from Brazil´s biggest corruption scandal: Lava Jato. Bolsonaro´s solid evangelical base was fed with a great deal of fake images. Those images present Bolsonaro as a Christian athlete, riding withe horses or leading the world towards salvation but also antagonizing Lula, forging images that show him as an antichrist, supporting non-Christians, abortion and LGBT agenda, or in connection with crime. Starting the second tour of the elections, Lula´s campaign entered the disinformation war using the same tools as their opponents, forging fake images about Bolsonaro’s connection with the masonry and propagating symbols and signs that might lead to the direct association of Bolsonaro with the antichrist. Fact checking agencies like LUPA but also firm actions taken by the Supreme Court together with the Electoral Justice department have decrypted, revealed and taken out of the web these types of fake contents. Yet, the velocity of the fake is far greater.

Paper short abstract:

This paper reflects on the dynamics of short video by reassessing ethics of pranks, skits and satires in the digital and information disorder era. Using content analysis and survey, it draws inferences from their production and distribution to the Nigerian audience with low level of media literacy.

Paper long abstract:

The digital age has further opened a litmus test for the centuries held maxim that “seeing is believing”. False narratives and deep-fakes have burred the lines between fictions and non-fictions with the production of skits, pranks and satires. In combating information disorder (fake news, misinformation, disinformation and other typologies), media and non-governmental organisations have developed parameters to determine the extent of “factuality” of media contents and has gone a step further to engage in media literacy to develop the critical minds of audience. Though efforts have been made on deep-fakes, has such intervention been extended to the making of short videos (skits, pranks, satires) and how the audience experience these contents as fictions or non-fictions? What ethics guide the making of these contents? Are there basic guidelines or principles in the assessment of these contents? This paper reflects on these questions by reassessing the ethics of pranks, skits, satires making in the digital and information disorder era. Using content analysis and survey, this study will draw inferences from the production of skits, pranks and satires, and their distributions to the Nigerian audience with low level of media literacy.This study argues that there is a need to develop a model for the assessment of these contents to establish their “truthfulness”, “reliability” and determine whether they are what they claimed to be (fictions or non-fictions). It also emphasises the need to integrate accountability in the production of these contents as a way of building trust in the contents produced for audience consumption.

Paper short abstract:

How does viral culture play an important role in the way we interact with images? How do fake quote images and memes deepen political polarisation? How can we resist such a culture? To answer these questions, this paper presents an exploratory empirical investigation into Thai politics.

Paper long abstract:

During the past decade, social networks have changed the way people participate in political life. These platforms allow communication where information can be shared easily. In this regard, scholars speak of the growing significance of visual aspects (Kenny 2010; Barnhurst & Quinn 2012). Posts with visual or video information tend to generate more engagement than text (Shifman 2014; Denisova 2019). In virality, issues relating to mis- and disinformation, and fake news are challenging democracies around the world, including Thailand where the 2014 coup d'état left the nation more divided than it had been for decades.

How does viral culture play an important role in the way we create, see, share, and interact with images, particularly in politics and social movements? How do fake quote images and memes deepen political polarisation? How can we resist such a culture? To answer these questions, this paper presents an exploratory empirical investigation into Thai politics, the exploration of which is vital to the smooth functioning of a democratic society.

This paper reviews a range of research in this area, showing that trust and (mis)trust issues have begun to emerge in Thai society. It also outlines some of the variables that are currently being focused on and those that are being considered for the future. Emphasis is given to the significance of visuals, social networks and age groups in shaping the Thai political landscape and the adaptation of fact-checking in practice. The significant implications of research in this area are also discussed.