Brazil in Twenty-First Century Popular Media

This volume examines some of the ways that Brazil has been represented and seeks to represent itself in popular media. It looks at social inequalities, racial divisions, and legacies of political restructuring as it illuminates the challenges and opportunities that the nation faces at present and going into preparations for and recovery from the upcoming mega events, both the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Summer Olympics. Drawing on the expertise of scholars in the fields of film and media studies, political science, social movement analysis, and cultural studies this volume features chapters examining the role of stereotyped Brazilian identity and myths of what it means to be Brazilian, the growing interest in favela—slum—culture, and sites of resistance in contemporary Brazilian society.

The importance of Brazil in global economics, expressive culture and identity politics can no longer be denied. In the rush to explain the successes and shortcomings of the "sleeping giant" nation, we often miss the big picture of representation. Brazil in Twenty-First Century Popular Media is an essential text that clarifies the contradictions involved in capitalizing on poverty and marginalization by showing how outsiders see Brazilians and how various classes of Brazilians depict each other in film, television, the internet and other media outlets. Editor Naomi Pueo Wood has done an admirable job not only organizing the essays into clear themes but also suggesting future directions for Brazilian studies in a moment when the common sense notion of "being Brazilian" has changed from a racially mixed lark to a socially mobile go-getter. If you want to keep up with the rapidly changing country of Brazil and the equally dynamic field of media studies, this is the book to buy., Brazil in Twenty-First Century Popular Media: Culture, Politics, and Nationalism on the World Stage examines the ways in which Brazil, at the beginning of a new century, is being represented beyond the stereotypical imagery commonly associated with the country: samba, carnival, and soccer. The book brings a multidisciplinary perspective to Brazilian Studies and approaches issues of race, social inequality, and national identity in a language that will be compelling to specialists and non-specialists alike. Brazil in Twenty-First Century Popular Media is a timely contribution to a critical reflection on the Brazilian experience, at a moment when Brazil projects itself as a major player on the global stage., Mingling contributions from scholars with diverse disciplinary and national backgrounds, who are in different stages of their academic careers, this book is an important step in the development of our understanding of the ways contemporary Brazil has been represented from the outside and seeks to represent itself for both national and international audiences. It is a welcome addition to the theoretical and historical literature on popular media and will definitely improve the ways we think about and teach Brazilian society, culture, and politics., Brazil in Twenty-First Century Popular Media is a timely collection of articles on artistic and cinematic representations that have helped define and solidify Brazil’s status as a vital global actor.  Offering an accessible line-up of contributions for specialists and non-specialists alike, readers gain a historical sense of Brazil as a promised land full of vision and hope, yet also battling enduring problems of inequality, poverty, drug trafficking, and human rights violations.

Naomi Pueo Wood is assistant professor of Spanish and Portuguese at Colorado College in Colorado Springs.