[Under a pestilent land of lies: misinformation and denialism in the smallpox epidemic in Ceará, Brazil, 1900-1905, and the covid-19 pandemic in Brazil, 2020-2022].

Abstract

The article draws a parallel between two pathological phenomena with great social impact in different settings: the smallpox epidemic in Ceará, northeastern Brazil, between 1900 and 1905, and the covid-19 pandemic in Brazil between 2020 and 2022. Despite the historical and temporal distance between these two episodes, there are some significant similarities in the ways they were conducted politically, especially with regard to the use of fake news and misinformation on the emergency of implementing mass vaccination. The analysis makes extensive use of press reports concerning the covid-19 pandemic and writings by the pharmacist Rodolfo Teófilo, a key figure in the smallpox vaccination campaign in Ceará.