Fake news e representação política na assembleia legislativa da bahia: uma exploração dos elementos que incidem na crença em fake news e a relação com a percepção de representação política dos deputados

Abstract

The popularization of digital social media has brought representatives and constituents closer together in modern democracies. Immersed in these relationships, legislators and voters are exposed to phenomena unique to the politics of the digital era, such as fake news. In light of this, the present research posed the question: What factors influence exposure to and belief in fake news among the deputies of the 20th Legislature (2023–2027) of the Legislative Assembly of Bahia (ALBA)? The study sought not only to identify these factors but also to understand the role of fake news in the representative relationship. To achieve this, the research employed a quantitative methodology using a survey applied to a sample collected with a flow point sampling in the Legislative Assembly of Bahia. The survey aimed to detect the attitudes and values of deputies regarding their parliamentary activity, media consumption, and belief in fake news. The results reinforce some findings already present in the literature on the topic, such as ideological bias and the consumption of news on digital social media being central elements for believing in fake news. Additionally, the study highlights that a collectivist pattern of representation is more correlated with belief in fake news than a particularist pattern. This correlation is explained by the reverse coattail effect and the role of mayors as intermediaries in the representative relationship of particularist deputies with their constituents, particularly during electoral periods. Meanwhile, collectivist deputies are immersed in the same networks of meaning as their voters, as they use digital social environments to connect with and unite geographically dispersed voters around shared meanings. This makes them more vulnerable to digital falsehoods.