Lula, Bolsonaro ordered to call off attempts at online censorship

Brazil's electoral court has issued a warning to incumbent President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Senator Flavio Bolsonaro to cease their ongoing legal battle concerning social media censorship in their presidential campaigns. Both candidates have filed a record number of censorship requests, alleging online misinformation from their opposing camp.

Incumbent Lula, the favorite to win the Oct 25 runoff, narrowly defeated his far-right rival in the initial voting. The Superior Electoral Court (TSE) cautioned that the "judicialization of the electoral process" could hinder debate. TSE registered 162 legal challenges after the first round, tripling the number in the 2022 elections' corresponding period.

A contentious issue involves "Lula's Army," a WhatsApp channel with over 4 million followers, which Bolsonaro's supporters allege spreads misinformation, including claims about social benefit cuts. Lula's campaign denies these claims. The TSE has authorized the channel. Lula's Workers' Party accused tech giant Meta of meddling in the election due to restrictions on its Instagram content, requesting explanations from the company, which cited "technical problems" worldwide.

Additionally, Lula's campaign accused Google's AI tool, Gemini, of attributing false statements to the incumbent. After losing the first round, Lula actively sought meetings with politicians boasting millions of followers, claiming he is "king of the selfie," despite previously avoiding cellphone use.