Failed Honeymoon: Dilma Rousseff’s Third Election Round

• DOI: 10.1177/0094582X18767429
• Author: João Feres Júnior,Luna de Oliveira Sassara
• Date: 01 May 2018
• Published date: 01 May 2018
• Subject Matter: Articles

LATIN AMERICAN PERSPECTIVES, Issue 220, Vol. 45 No. 3, May 2018, 224–235

DOI: 10.1177/0094582X18767429

© 2018 Latin American Perspectives

224

Failed Honeymoon

Dilma Rousseff’s Third Election Round

by

João Feres Júnior and Luna de Oliveira Sassara

Translated by

Frutuoso Santana

In a test of the hypothesis of the existence of a honeymoon period in Brazil after Dilma

Rousseff’s victory in the 2014 presidential election, a sentiment analysis of a large data-

base composed of newspaper articles published by Brazil’s most influential quality news-

papers, Folha de S. Paulo, O Globo, and Estado de S. Paulo, from January 2014 to

August 2016, showed that negative coverage of her skyrocketed right after she took office

and stayed very high until she was removed from power. Also tested was the hypothesis

that the bias against Rousseff was simply a general disposition of the media to exert their

watchdog function in the public interest through a comparison of her coverage with that

received by Senator Aécio Neves, the losing candidate in the election and leader of the main

opposition party and the campaign for her impeachment, who was the object of innumer-

able charges of corruption. This hypothesis was also rejected.

A análise de valência de uma grande base de textos publicados pelos quality newspapers

mais influentes do Brasil, Folha de São Paulo, O Globo e o Estado de S. Paulo, de

janeiro de 2014 a agosto de 2016 demonstra que, após sua vitória na eleição presidencial

de 2014, Dilma Rousseff não teve uma Lua de Mel por parte da grande imprensa. Pelo

contrário, sua cobertura negativa se intensificou enormemente logo depois de assumir o

cargo e ficou muito alta até sua remoção do poder. Também foi testada a hipótese de que o

viés contra Rousseff fosse simplesmente uma disposição geral da mídia para exercer sua

função de vigilância (watchdog) do interesse público frente aos políticos eleitos por meio

da comparação de sua cobertura com aquela recebida por Aécio Neves, senador, candidato

derrotado à presidência e líder da oposição e da campanha pelo impeachment de Dilma, e

alvo de inúmeras acusações de corrupção. Tal hipótese também foi rejeitada pela análise

dos dados.

Keywords: Democracy, Media, Brazil, Dilma, Honeymoon

American scholars have coined the term “honeymoon” to describe the

period that immediately follows the president’s inauguration (Hughes, 1995;

Johnson, 1983; Norpoth, 1984). The term refers to the fact that public opinion

(Headrick and Lanoue, 1991), the legislature (Dominguez, 2005), and the media

(Li, 1999) extend goodwill and cordiality to the newly elected president at the

beginning of his or her administration. Scholars disagree on the length of the

João Feres Júnior is a professor of political science and director of the Instituto de Estudos Sociais

e Políticos at the Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro. Luna de Oliveira Sassara is a political

scientist and researcher at that university. Frutuoso Santana is a translator living in New York City.

767429LAPXXX10.1177/0094582X18767429Latin American PerspectivesFeres Júnior and Sassara / ROUSSEFF’S THIRD ROUND

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