ABSTRACT

Televiewing promotes gift-giving, as one manifestation of consumerism. In particular, television increases the popularity of collective holidays, such as Christmas and Carnival, which is the Brazilian equivalent of Louisiana's Mardi Gras. DaMatta points out those public celebrations such as Carnival must be interpreted in terms of the opposition between home and street that is so prominent in Brazilian society. There is reason to ask how television has affected festivities in small Brazilian communities; Brazil's national Carnival coverage seems more often to inspire stimulus diffusion than direct borrowing through simple imitation. Brazil has been rather tolerant of homosexuality, which has never been illegal there. Before Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) became a public health concern, supposed homosexual and heterosexual love affairs were regular fodder for gossip columns. Commercial television also has its way of encouraging gifts on the individual-focused occasion's birthdays, weddings, and anniversaries.