Retórica desinformacional e populismo digital: estratégias discursivas de jovens parlamentares nas redes sociais e os limites das políticas de moderação

Abstract

This dissertation investigates rhetorical and disinformational strategies present in the digital discourse of young Brazilian right-wing parliamentarians, focusing on the public profile of federal deputy Nikolas Ferreira (PL-MG) and other secondary actors operating within the political ecosystem of social media. The study assumes that disinformation is not limited to the circulation of false content, but constitutes a discursive practice that mobilizes emotions, moral values, and collective identifications in digital environments. The research is grounded in French Discourse Analysis, drawing on contributions from Maingueneau (2008), Charaudeau (2006), and Van Dijk (2013), as well as studies on political rhetoric, digital populism, and algorithmic moderation. The corpus consists of videos published between January 2025 and June 2026 on Instagram, Facebook, and X (Twitter), selected according to engagement metrics and thematic relevance. The analysis examines categories related to ethos, pathos, and logos, alongside strategies involving data distortion, simplified comparisons, performative self-presentation, and emotional appeals. Findings indicate the construction of a performative political ethos supported by narratives of plausibility and by algorithmic amplification dynamics that challenge the limits of platform moderation policies. The study concludes that disinformational rhetoric operates as a communicative style associated with digital populism, contributing to discursive polarization and to the reconfiguration of legitimacy criteria within the networked public sphere.