A Voz do Brasil: Radio, Salience, and Resilience

Abstract

To make itself heard, the state relies on instruments of acoustic salience. The purpose of those instruments is to realign a hearing community. In this article, I examine the radio program A Voz do Brasil (The Voice of Brazil) as an instrument of acoustic salience. Produced by the government and focused on the government, the daily one-hour program is mandatory for all radio stations: those that refuse to air it can be fined or suspended. Most Brazilians find the show unappealing, despite attempts from various administrations to “modernize” its form and content. How has A Voz do Brasil remained on air since its creation in the 1930s despite the lack of audience? In following the program’s trajectory during the Vargas Era (1930–45), the Fourth Republic (1945–64), the Military Dictatorship (1964–85), and the New Republic (1985-present), I show how acoustic salience has been overtaken by governmental resilience.