🔉 Microphones of mutiny

The conviction of former President Jair Bolsonaro and several military allies for attempting to overturn Brazil’s 2022 elections revealed a country willing to confront, for the first time ever, those who sought to undermine democracy. But prosecutors argue the reckoning should not stop with state actors.

A federal prosecutor in São Paulo says broadcaster Jovem Pan played “a fundamental role” in the Bolsonaro-led coup plot and must be held legally accountable. Prosecutors are seeking to revoke the station’s radio licenses and impose a fine of BRL 13.4 million (USD 2.5 million), equivalent to 10% of the company’s assets, as compensation for collective moral damages.

Jovem Pan’s reach extends beyond radio, with programming also available on YouTube and a pay-TV channel, platforms beyond the reach of government licensing.

The proceedings against Jovem Pan come as US President Donald Trump suggests American broadcasters should be stripped of their licenses for criticizing him. His remarks, a blatant attack on freedom of speech, followed ABC’s suspension of late-night host Jimmy Kimmel over remarks he made about the assassination of pro-Trump firebrand Charlie Kirk. Kimmel’s show was pulled after the Federal Communications Commission chair threatened to act against ABC. Disney, ABC’s controller, depends on FCC approval for many of its mergers and acquisitions.

But the situations in Brazil and the United States are not the same…

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