Informação ou não? Possibilidades de abordagem do videogame na Televisão Aberta partir do programa ZeroUm

Abstract

This paper investigates the possibilities of approaching videogames on brazilian open television, using the program ZeroUm, broadcast by Rede Globo between 2016 and 2019, as a case study. It starts from the premise that videogames are a multidimensional phenomenon, with economic, technological, and cultural relevance that legitimizes them as an object of journalistic coverage. The work, therefore, seeks to understand whether ZeroUm explored this informative potential or presented itself predominantly as an entertainment product. To this end, conceptual distinctions between information, entertainment, and infotainment are established, based on a dialogue between authors such as Barbosa (1999), Wolf (1994), and Dias (2017). The methodology chosen was Content Analysis, according to Bardin (2011), applied to four episodes of the program, categorizing segments based on criteria such as contextual depth, public relevance, and the use of spectacle resources. The results demonstrate that, despite a format that would allow for information/entertainment hybridization, ZeroUm systematically prioritized entertainment elements, such as humor, informal language, and playful interaction, to the detriment of the contextualization and depth expected from an informative program. The conclusion, therefore, is that the program is essentially configured as an entertainment attraction, leaving open, in the history of brazilian open television, the opportunity for journalistic coverage on the country's largest broadcaster to explore the multiple dimensions of the electronic games universe with a focus on information production.