Tecnologias digitais nas favelas: agência comunitária em saúde no contexto da pandemia de Covid-19

Abstract

In this research, I investigate how digital technologies were used in favelas and peripheral areas to promote the dissemination of health information during the Covid-19 pandemic. Based on the work of the project Jovens Comunicadores – Edição Covid-19 [Young Communicators – Covid-19 Edition], we examine the communication mobilization strategies carried out by young people from favelas in the metropolitan region of Rio de Janeiro, focusing on the use of the WhatsApp application as a tool for disseminating informative health content and interaction among young people. The research is based on a qualitative approach, combining semi-structured interviews with project participants and content analysis of the materials produced and shared by young communicators. To understand the dynamics of technological appropriation and the meanings attributed to the use of WhatsApp in the context of the project, I adopt a sociotechnical perspective, analyzing digital platforms as spaces for interaction, agency, and dispute over narratives. The study concluded that communication actions such as the one investigated, undertaken by and for the population, had a significant impact on reality and proved to be an important contrast in the context of misinformation that surrounded the pandemic period.