Far-right media coverage of Brazil’s January 8 riots — in which supporters of Brazil’s far-right ex-President Jair Bolsonaro stormed the country’s federal buildings over baseless voter fraud allegations — closely mirrors the rhetoric of the media’s pre- and post-January 6 insurrection coverage.

In both instances, American right-wing media pushed outlandish conspiracy theories and defended the seditious rioters while casting doubt on presidential election results. Right-wing figures, including coup plotter Steve Bannon, conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, and Fox News host Tucker Carlson, all recycled talking points from 2020 and 2021 to defend the Brazilian attackers and find a way to blame outside — and sometimes imaginary — forces rather than the extremists actually at fault.