Brazilians will soon head to the polls for the second round of their presidential election. The vote is a close contest between left-wing incumbent Lula da Silva and right-wing challenger Flavio Bolsonaro. The election is a good moment to explore how Brazilians get their news, how much they trust it and what are their attitudes towards it. Here are ten findings based on more than a decade of survey data from our Digital News Report. 

1. The sources Brazilians use to get their news 

Social media surpassed TV as the most widely used source of news in Brazil during the pandemic. But its use for news has declined 19 points in the past decade along with almost every news source.

• The only ascendant news source is AI chatbots, whose use for news is growing fast, especially within the youngest age groups. One-in-five (19%) Brazilians under 25 say they use AI chatbots for news. 

There are some significant differences in the way right-leaning and left-leaning Brazilians get their news. For example, the use of TV news has declined much more rapidly among those on the right compared to the left, with the sharpest falls occurring from 2020 to 2023, a period covering the COVID-19 pandemic and most of Jair Bolsonaro’s presidency. 

Our data shows a similar decline in the use of news websites within the right during the same years. But differences between both groups are now much smaller, due to the fall in the use of news websites within the left in the past three years.  

The use of social media for news was higher within the right than within the left during Bolsonaro’s presidency. But the gap between both groups has been closed. This has happened partly because of the shrinking use among right-leaning Brazilians (with a drop of 18 points in the past four years) and partly due to a small uptick among those on the left since 2024. 

2. The social and video networks Brazilians use for news 

The platforms that Brazilians use for news have changed dramatically in the past decade. When Jair Bolsonaro won the 2018 presidential election, Facebook and WhatsApp were Brazilians’ favourite networks, followed by YouTube. 

Today’s figures present a very different picture, with Instagram and WhatsApp at the top and YouTube closely behind them. Facebook is down 41 points from its peak in 2014, partly because younger Brazilians have abandoned it: only 11% of those 18-25 use it for news. 

• Our data also shows two key changes: the use of X/Twitter for news has been cut in half in the past eight years and TikTok has emerged as an important network, especially within the youngest group.  

Our 2025 data¹ suggests that the use of YouTube, Instagram, WhatsApp and Facebook was slightly higher among right-leaning Brazilians than among those on the left. But differences were perhaps smaller than what we might expect given the popular discourse linking the use of social platforms to the rise of the far-right. 

• Like many of the countries in our report, Brazil has seen all forms of participation plummeting in the past decade. Sharing news (-20 points), commenting on it (-29) and talking about it (-23) have all fallen, likely due to a highly polarised online environment.

3. The news creators Brazilians are turning to

Brazil is one of the countries in our sample with the highest use of news creators. One-third of Brazilians say they used news creators for news in the past week, but only 17% say they cover all or most of their needs, suggesting they are using them to complement news from other sources. 

• News creator use is slightly more common among the under 45s and slightly higher for left-leaning Brazilians. However, the percentage is much lower (20%) among those who don’t respond about their allegiances, suggesting news creators are used by those most politically engaged.

In October 2025 we published this report with the lists of the most mentioned individuals by respondents to our surveys in 2024 and 2025 in the context of news and social media platforms. 

• The list includes both the current president and his predecessor, as well as a large number of right-wing activists, such as young MP Nikolas Ferreira, Augusto Nunes and Bárbara Destefani. Left-leaning respondents tend to follow anchors from Globo news channels such as William Bonner and César Tralli as well as commentators with CNN. | Explore the report

4. Trust in news has gone down dramatically

Trust in news has fallen 23 points in the past decade to 36% in 2026, with figures lower for people under 35 (30%).

• It's important to stress that the trust scores of the Brazilian news brands covered by our report range between 47% and 62%, and are much higher than trust news overall, suggesting many Brazilians appreciate the value of professional journalism over news they get from other sources.

Our data also shows differences across the political spectrum, with those on the right trusting the news nine points less than those on the left.

• The percentage of right-leaning Brazilians who lack trust in the news has doubled in the past decade, with most of that rise taking place during Bolsonaro’s presidency. Lack of trust on the left peaked at 40% in 2018 and it’s gone up again in the last year.

5. Interest in news has plummeted in the past decade

Around half of Brazilians say they are extremely or very interested in news, down 36 points from 87% in 2013. This fall accelerated dramatically during Bolsonaro’s presidency and the COVID-19 pandemic. 

• Interest is lower among women, centrists and those with no college degree. But we find the biggest differences across age groups. Only 32% of those aged 18-24 say they are interested, compared to 79% in 2013. 

6. Concerns about online misinformation have fallen 

The percentage of Brazilians concerned about online misinformation fell 21points from its peak right before the pandemic and is now similar to that of other Latin American countries. Concerns are slightly higher among women, and considerably higher among the over 55s, left-right partisans and those with a college degree. 

• It's important to stress that concerns are very similar with the left and the right, following a brief period during Jair Bolsonaro’s presidency in which more right-leaning Brazilians expressed concerns around this issue. 

Back in 2025 we asked our survey respondents about the risks posed by different actors in terms of misinformation. Most right-leaning and left-leaning Brazilians put domestic politicians and influencers at the top, with foreign governments and celebrities next on the list. 

• As the chart shows, those on the right were much more likely to blame activists, journalists and news organisations, while those on the left were more likely to blame ordinary people – perhaps out of concern about messaging apps. 

7. The preference for impartial news is weaker than in most European countries

Impartial news is valued by many in Brazil. But the percentage of those who prefer news from sources with no particular point of view (37%) is lower than the one in many European countries. 

• The percentage is very similar for partisans on both sides of the political spectrum. But it’s higher for centrists (46%) and much lower for unaffiliated respondents (22%), most of whom don’t have a view on this. 

When asked about their view on how the news media is covering major news stories, Brazilians are extremely divided across the political spectrum. Most left-leaning respondents are as happy with the coverage of inflation, immigration, conflict and climate change, but right-leaning Brazilians tend to be unhappy. 

If you want to go deeper:

• Read this year’s Digital News Report country profile for Brazil, authored by Rodrigo Carro

• Explore our reporting and research on the country 

• Explore more data on Brazil on our Digital News Report interactive

Footnote

¹ Due to a repoll, our 2026 data on the use of social and video networks can’t be split by political leaning.