Abstract
The article discusses the emergence of retweet (RT) networks on Twitter during the FIFA World Cup 2014 semifinal match between Brazil and Germany. The aim is to analyze the major retweet networks brokered by the #vergonhabrasil (shameonbrazil) hashtag during and after the match in order to identify the range of issues and the extent to which the networks brokered by the hashtag generated a temporary “hybrid forum”. Based in Actor-Network Theory, we consider this mega sporting event as a controversial project, and we verify that Brazil’s 1–7 defeat set off a sub-controversy on social media, fostering debates that encompassed discussions concerning party politics and national identity. In considering the hybridization of the controversies within the media platforms in which they take place, we produce visualizations of the main RTs networks from a dataset containing 37,029 retweets to discuss how the associations between the profiles changed during five hours of debate.
Keywords
Controversy; World Cup; Twitter; Actor-Network Theory; Hashtag
