Foreign reaction to Moraes aggravates perception of country under censorship

Concerns about the decisions of Minister Alexandre de Moraes, of the Federal Supreme Court (STF), to censor Brazilian personalities and channels have reverberated with unprecedented intensity in international public opinion. In recent days, the repercussions in foreign newspapers and the negative reaction of social networks to the magistrate’s orders show that the perception that Brazil lives under censorship has more and more support outside the country.

On Sunday (22), the North American newspaper The New York Times published an article claiming that Moraes, using a “broad interpretation” of the powers of the STF, “pressed to investigate and prosecute, as well as silence on social networks, anyone he considers a threat to Brazilian institutions”.

“For many on the Brazilian left”, says the newspaper, “this made him the man who saved the young democracy”. “However, for many others in Brazil, he is threatening it”, adds the newspaper, stating that his “aggressive approach” and “growing authority” have placed him “at the center of a complicated debate in Brazil about how far one can go to fight the extreme right”.

This is the second time in a few months that the newspaper raises doubts about the legality of Moraes’ actions. In October 2022, days before the second round of elections, the New York Times had already published an article with the title: “A man can now decide what can be said online in Brazil”.

Also last Sunday, columnist Mary Anastasia O’Grady, from Wall Street Journal, published a text stating that the STF “is an even greater threat to democracy than the January 8 riots”. In the text, she defines Minister Alexandre de Moraes as someone who “has a decidedly authoritarian tendency” and “became the face of a repression of freedom of expression not seen since the country returned to democracy under the 1988 Constitution”.

On the same day, the Spanish newspaper the country also published a report addressing the risks of Moraes’ superpowers. “The same analyzes and editorials that applaud his courageous and decisive attitude point to the risk that his decisions set a dangerous precedent”, stated the vehicle.

One day before, on Saturday (21), the North American newspaper washington post published an article showing the concern of the Brazilian right with the action of the STF in cases of censorship in the country. The text mentions “a polarizing pressure from Alexandre de Moraes – a judge of the Federal Supreme Court, president of the main electoral court in the country and, according to some, the most powerful man in Brazil” that has taken to new levels “the fight against fake news”.

“In recent months, Bolsonaro’s nemesis has arrested five alleged offenders without trial and ordered social media platforms to block dozens of accounts of politicians, commentators and influencers for allegedly propagating lies, hatred, incitement and other ‘anti-democratic’ acts. Most of the targets are from the political right”, adds the washington post.

This Wednesday (25), the North American news agency Associated Press published an article claiming that Moraes “tests the limits of freedom of expression in Brazil”. Regarding the fake news inquiry, the agency says that its establishment “immediately generated controversy and was unprecedented in that it was not the result of a request from legislators or a governmental institution”. He also highlights that the Supreme Court served “as accuser, victim and arbiter at the same time”.

Social networks signal reaction to Moraes’ decisions

At the same time that foreign journalistic vehicles have raised doubts about the legality of Moraes’ decisions, two social networks that received censorship orders from the minister’s office signaled that they will not comply with some of his decisions.

According to the article of this Wednesday (25) of the newspaper The globe, Telegram sent a letter to Moraes criticizing his decision to block the channel of elected federal deputy Nikolas Ferreira (PL-MG). The application’s lawyers say that the STF’s orders regarding the removal of content have been made with “generic grounds” and in a “disproportionate” way. In addition, they state that the complete blocking of profiles may represent censorship and prevent “a free communication space for legitimate speeches”.

Still this Wednesday, Moraes fined Telegram R$ 1.2 million for not blocking the deputy’s channel. The minister ignored the company’s arguments and said that “there is no justification for the partial non-compliance with the court decision”.

Another platform that has not yet accepted a decision by Moraes is Rumble. Monark’s channel, former presenter of the Flow Podcast, remains on the air even after the suspension order determined by the minister. Monark has 258 thousand followers on the social network. Rumble CEO Chris Pavlovski even shared a post by journalist Glenn Greenwald on social media about Moraes’ escalation of authoritarianism.

Greenwald is one of the main foreign critics of the STF’s arbitrariness in Brazil. Recently, he also received attention from Twitter owner, billionaire Elon Musk, after raising concerns about censorship of right-wing profiles in Brazil. Musk called the incident “extremely concerning”.