Violent Scenes in Brazil’s 2013 Protests

Abstract

The article discusses the unique contributions of audiovisual records made by ordinary people during the “June Journeys” protests, which took over the Brazilian streets in June and July 2013. Comparing national TV coverage with the videos made by protestors or by the alternative network Ninja Media, we draw on Jost’s concept of “violent scenes,” on Rancière’s discussion of distribution of the sensible and visibility, as well as Brazilian communication scholarship. We argue that ordinary people’s and Ninja Media’s “violent scenes,” as opposed to the “scenes of violence” shown by the national news, have particularly strong impacts on those who watch them because they spread easily via an engaged, connected audience. At the same time, violent scenes coexist with traditional media narratives, making visible a greater diversity of viewpoints and increasing the likelihood of contradiction.