How the media fuels a culture of hate.

What some of the major Brazilian media outlets have been practicing can be called anything but journalism. The biased way in which they report, misinform, or distort information has long since reached unbearable levels of irresponsibility.

To a large extent, the culture of hatred and intolerance that is palpable in our society today originates from or is supported by the sensationalization of violence, the dissemination of mere conjecture as if they were absolute truths, and the shameless way in which reputations are assassinated in this relentless pursuit of scandalizing and manipulating public opinion.

Former President Lula has just completed a caravan through the northeast of the country. These were political events that gathered crowds in about 30 cities, across nine states, covering a distance of more than 4.300 kilometers. Whether one likes Lula or not, given the scale of the trip and the impressive popular mobilization, the political situation in Brazil, and the fact that the former president has been the main target of news coverage in recent years, one thing is certain: it was news. Despite extensive coverage in the foreign press, the story was simply ignored by the national media. A blatant example of biased journalism.

But, unfortunately, there is something much worse. There are falsifications, clumsy and irresponsible manipulations, aimed at deceiving the inattentive reader. This is the case with the front page of the newspaper O Globo on September 6th. The Marinho family's newspaper places the grotesque photo of the suitcases of money attributed by Federal Police investigators to the PMDB member Geddel Vieira Lima below a headline that speaks of the indictment of Lula, Dilma Rousseff and the Workers' Party for "criminal organization".

Well, this is a regrettable attempt to link the former presidents and their party to the 51 million who revolted the country, found yesterday, and who belong to a former minister and close friend of Michel Temer, affiliated with the PMDB, convicted of proven crimes. It's a fabrication, a trick – a lie plastered on the front page of one of Brazil's largest newspapers! It's very likely that this falsification will go viral on social media profiles that have become known for using lies and fake news as a weapon in political disputes.

For the good of society and the public interest, this kind of thing needs to end. Information is serious business; it's a citizen's right and a concession from the State. It's necessary to regulate the media, including the internet, not to censor them, but to prevent concentration in the hands of a few, to give space to more voices and opposing viewpoints, and to curb the criminal manipulation, the incitement of hatred, and the media lynching that are rampant in our society today.