The News
A false post circulating in pro-Jair Bolsonaro social media circles claims that the Brazilian president did a conference call with an official at the Hague about “federal intervention” that could overturn his election loss last week.
One easy way to tell the post is fake? The official in question is Lady Gaga.
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Misinformation has run rampant on social media networks like WhatsApp and Telegram throughout the Brazilian presidential election, especially in pro-Bolsonaro groups.
A post that was shared in the days after Bolsonaro lost the presidential election to leftist challenger Luiz Inácio “Lula” da Silva, claimed that Bolsonaro had a video call with an International Court of Justice official at the Hague named Stefani Germanotta to discuss measures related to a “federal intervention to recount the votes in the polls.” It urged Bolsonarists to not give up in their fight to overturn the election.
Stefani Germanotta is Lady Gaga’s real name, and the graphic of the video call is photoshopped. The image of Gaga was taken from an interview she did with Jimmy Fallon in 2020.
Bolsonaro has not formally conceded the race to Lula or congratulated him, but his administration acknowledged that the transition of power will begin.
Unchecked false claims about the legitimacy of the election have continued. Spurred by Bolsonaro’s repeated claims through his campaign that cast doubt on the country’s electoral system, his most radical supporters have called for a military coup.
