How Does Brazil’s Ban on X Affect Fan Accounts?
Words: Ana Beatriz Reitz
On August 30, the Supreme Court in Brazil unanimously voted to outlaw the social media X (formerly Twitter) in the country. The ban arose following Elon Musk's refusal to follow local legislation that requires a national representative, as well as the non-cooperation to investigate crimes, such as hate speech, occurring on the platform. Since Musk and X "considered itself above the rule of law," as judges Flavio Dino and Cristiano Zanin put it, and didn't want to block the accounts committing these crimes, the Brazilian Supreme Court opted to block the platform.
Gradually, X began to go dark in the largest country in Latin America, leading many Brazilian netizens to migrate to other platforms. While some still have access to X, those who don’t are using VPN (Virtual Private Network) to do so, at the risk of being fined around £6900 per day, equivalent to nearly R$50,000. But the main concern isn’t even the money. Brazilians living abroad feel disconnected from their comrades. Most affected aren’t just those whose access has been restricted – but the users who consume their content. Recently, social media was flooded with farewells from pages dedicated to pop culture figures who have revealed themselves as Brazilians, and said goodbye to their audiences. As the main community creating and managing fan accounts on the platform is based in Brazil, X's audience and Brazilian residents are confronted with a challenge.
When Jhonata created @QGBillieEilish in 2021, his objective was to build an informal fandom where posts were less automated. The project has been a success. Currently with 46.3K followers and four moderators, the page has provided many perks to the team - from finding community to networking with other accounts. Since the suspension, a lot has changed.
Without access to the platform, the team relies on friends in other countries to post. ''Sometimes I find myself opening X in the hope that it will work,'' says Jhonata with a wistful tone. Despite the melancholy, the @QGBillieEilish team understands the Supreme Court's decision. ''Lately, X has been the scene of extremist and criminal discourse, where the platform hasn't taken a serious stance to combat this type of content,'' the team explains.
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Although he thinks the decision is fair, Jhonata considers the amount charged for VPN use excessive. ''Many have an account on the platform as a way of working,'' He notes, adding, ''That can affect a lot of people’s lives.'' And it does - according to Beatriz of @BellaHadidBra, which has 24.6K followers, the suspension was "sad mainly because Twitter used to be a daily source of news and photos" and she now has no access to locate these things so easily.
For Paola Strabelli, founder of @botviriginia dedicated to Virginia Woof with 115.3K followers, the ban is also appropriate. ''I haven't liked Twitter since Elon Musk bought it. The network has changed completely, he's shaped it the way he wants. What he says about fighting for anti-censorship, he did and does the opposite, often censoring most people who don't agree with him,'' says Strabelli, adding that ''Alexandre de Moraes is just fighting for the laws of Twitter to fit in with the laws of our country.''
As an introverted child with ADHD, Paola was never much of a reader, often opting for movies. But her interest in reading surfaced after seeing the 2018 film Vita And Virginia. ''From then on, I read most of her [Woolf's] famous books in one sitting,'' the administrator shared. She used to tweet excerpts on her personal account until she decided to create a dedicated space for that. Her goal was to encourage people to learn more about the author's work.
''The fan community was huge on X. An example of this was during the last presidential election when several portals got together and made a huge movement to be the voice of young people”
In addition to bringing together a community of readers and promoting the work of one of the world's most relevant writers at a time when books are rarely touched, Paola has connected with people around the world who share her passions. Still, when the news came out, it didn't hit her at first. ''Up until the moment I tweeted ‘goodbye’, things still weren't serious for me. When I saw the commotion it generated among my followers… I realised the level I had reached on the social network. It left a bittersweet taste,'' Paola explained.
For @GigiHadidBR, an account with 17 administrators, 29.3K followers, that has been dedicated to Gigi Hadid since 2013, the insecurity of losing all their work is terrifying. ''We don't know the future of X in Brazil and it affects us even more to think that we run the risk of losing everything that is there,'' shares Eduarda. Their page started on Facebook. But in mid-2014, as fan accounts began to migrate to X, @GigiHadidBR joined the bandwagon and expanded its community of Gigi Hadid devotees.
Given that the Brazilian fan base has such a strong digital power, @GigiHadidBR believes the ban is dangerous in affecting structural change outside of fandom too. ''The fan community was huge on X. An example of this was during the last presidential election when several portals got together and made a huge movement to be the voice of young people,'' the team shared.
@oliviacervo, an account dedicated to singer Olivia Rodrigo with four administrators, Maria Eduarda, Marllon, Cassie, and Marisa, adds how a lack of access has impacted them physically too. “The ban does affect us financially, since the account is monetised and receives a monthly income,” the team notes. Now that the application is blocked, the page’s engagement has decreased, now making it unable to be monetised. Jhonata from @QGBillieEilish shares similar concerns. "We pay for the platform's pro plan, because it gives us access to important features. We're paying for a plan that we used to have access to, and today we can't even deactivate or cancel that subscription," he explains.
The obstacles, however, go beyond the members. For most netizens, the prohibition harms the stan community in general. "As most people know, most of the big fan pages are run by Brazilians. Since the ban, there's been a big drop in engagement on the app," says Maria Eduarda. According to her, the suspension affects both national artists, like Anita and Pablo Vittar, and international ones, like Cardi B, who tweeted on August 30: ''Wait a lot of my fan pages are Brazilian!!! Come back hold up!!!''
But there's a solution to everything. While some believe that X will come back to life, others are dipping their toes into other platforms, hoping that their idols will join them. Wherever they go, they keep their heads up. Since the app’s ban, Bluesky has already welcomed 2 million Brazilian users who are eager to build their communities on the media. Instagram and Threads also look promising. “I believe that Brazilians find a way around everything,” Beatriz laughs.
