The Clever ST Label Online World Chatter as "astroturfing"
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So clever.
Since the mainstream traditional media are closely controlled by the government, and the online world is the only realm where they cannot excercise total control, they have taken a very clever approach. I have to complement them.
They deliberately create a head on clash.
Using the traditional media, they label the online chatter as "astroturfing" to discredit them.
It is written extensively in the newspaper today.
From now onwards, all kinds of online criticism will be dismissed as "astroturfing"
It's so clever.
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is it in the oxford dictionary already?
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They can discredit but not stop it. Too bad !
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Astroturfing is an English-language term referring to political, advertising, or public relations campaigns that are formally planned by an organization, but designed to mask its origins to create the impression of being spontaneous, popular "grassroots" behavior. The term refers to AstroTurf, a brand of synthetic carpeting designed to look like natural grass.
The goal of such a campaign is to disguise the efforts of a political or commercial entity as an independent public reaction to some political entity—a politician, political group, product, service or event. Astroturfers attempt to orchestrate the actions of apparently diverse and geographically distributed individuals, by both overt ("outreach", "awareness", etc.) and covert (disinformation) means. Astroturfing may be undertaken by an individual pushing a personal agenda or highly organized professional groups with financial backing from large corporations, unions, non-profits, or activist organizations. Very often the efforts are conducted by political consultants who also specialize in opposition research. Beneficiaries are not "grass root" campaigners but distant organizations that orchestrate such campaigns.
Word origin
The term is said to have been used first in this context by former US Senator Lloyd Bentsen of Texas. It is wordplay based on grassroots democracy efforts – truly spontaneous undertakings largely sustained by private persons – as opposed to politicians, governments, corporations, or public relations firms. AstroTurf refers to the bright green artificial grass used in some sports stadiums, so "astroturfing" refers to imitating or faking popular grassroots opinion or behaviour.
This practice is specifically prohibited by the code of ethics of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), and the Public Relations Institute of Australia (PRIA), the national associations for members of the public relations and communication profession in the United States and Australia.[1] As a private organization, the most significant punishment the PRSA and PRIA can hand out to members who engage in astroturfing is revocation of membership in the associations. Although the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) does not specifically mention astroturfing, it does require honest communication.
Astroturfing is a form of propaganda whose techniques usually consist of a few people attempting to give the impression that mass numbers of enthusiasts advocate some specific cause. In the UK this technique is better known as "rent-a-crowd" after the successful "rent-a-crate" business.
US Senator Lloyd Bentsen, believed to have coined the term, was quoted by the Washington Post in 1985 using it to describe a "mountain of cards and letters" sent to his Senate office to promote insurance industry interests, which Bentsen dismissed as "generated mail."[2]
The National Smokers Alliance, an early astroturf group created by Burson-Marsteller on behalf of tobacco giant Philip Morris,[3] worked to influence Federal legislation in 1995 by organizing mailings and running a phone-bank urging people to call or write to politicians expressing their opposition to laws aimed at discouraging teens from starting to smoke.[4]
In 1998, a combination of television ads and phone-banks were used to simulate "grassroots" opposition to a bill aimed at discouraging teenage smoking. According to The New York Times, "Those smokers who are reached by phone banks sponsored by cigarette makers, or who call the 800 number shown in television ads, are patched through to the senator of their choice."[5]
In 2003, apparent "grass-roots" letters favouring Republican Party policies appearing in local newspapers around the US were denounced as "astroturf" when Google searches revealed that identical letters were printed with different (local) signatures. The signers were electronically submitting pre-written letters from a political website that offered 5 "GOPoints" for sending one of their letters to a local paper plus an additional 2 "GOPoints" if the letter was published.[6]
Black propaganda is information that purports to be from a source on one side of a conflict, but is actually from the opposing side. Most astroturfing is black propaganda in that the identity of the source is falsified. However, the ostensible source of the evidence planted is usually not a grassroots organization. When black propaganda uses the same means as astroturfing, the distinction is less clear, as in the case of forged letters being sent to congressman Tom Perriello by a Washington lobbying firm working against 2009 clean energy legislation.
Journalist Ben Smith of The Politico has observed, "Interest groups across the spectrum have grown expert at locating, enraging and turning out authentic Americans. And the operatives behind the crowds say there’s nothing wrong with a practice as old as American politics."[7] Regarding the 2009 health care debate, author and blogger Ryan Sager has argued in a New York Times editorial: "Organizing isn’t cheating. Doing everything in your power to get your people to show up is basic politics."[8]
In business, astroturfing is one form of stealth marketing, which can include the manipulation of viral marketing. Several examples are described as "undercover marketing" in the documentary The Corporation.[9]
The term "astroturfing" is also used to describe public relations activities aimed at "falsely creating the impression of independent, popular support by means of an orchestrated and disguised public relations exercise....designed to give the impression of spontaneous support for an idea/product/company/service," according to the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) Social Media Guidelines,[10] which cautions members that an astroturfing campaign is "self-evidently likely to contradict the CIPR Code."
It has become easier to structure a commercial astroturfing campaign in the electronic era because the cost and effort to send an e-mail (especially a pre-written, sign-your-name-at-the-bottom e-mail) is so low. Companies may use a boiler room full of telephones and computers where hired activists locate people and groups who create enthusiasm for the specified cause. Also, the use of psychographics allows hired supporters to persuade their targeted audience.
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Originally posted by Veggie Bao:
So clever.
Since the mainstream traditional media are closely controlled by the government, and the online world is the only realm where they cannot excercise total control, they have taken a very clever approach. I have to complement them.
They deliberately create a head on clash.
Using the traditional media, they label the online chatter as "astroturfing" to discredit them.
It is written extensively in the newspaper today.
From now onwards, all kinds of online criticism will be dismissed as "astroturfing"
It's so clever.
in parliament, they are deaf frog, in online, they are the blind frog...they told me that they are the frog that hear no evil, see no evil but can smell an evil 10km away
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Astroturfing is a form of propaganda whose techniques usually consist of a few people attempting to give the impression that mass numbers of enthusiasts advocate some specific cause. In the UK this technique is better known as "rent-a-crowd" after the successful "rent-a-crate" business.
I remember reading some TR article on ST 'astroturfing' the election rallies
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Originally posted by Veggie Bao:
So clever.
Since the mainstream traditional media are closely controlled by the government, and the online world is the only realm where they cannot excercise total control, they have taken a very clever approach. I have to complement them.
They deliberately create a head on clash.
Using the traditional media, they label the online chatter as "astroturfing" to discredit them.
It is written extensively in the newspaper today.
From now onwards, all kinds of online criticism will be dismissed as "astroturfing"
It's so clever.
If you say nice things, then it will be termed as ... "massive support".
Anything else, it will be "astroturfing".
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so bottom line is just don't trust what we read in the internet regardless if it is pro or anti government. wasn't that obvious from the start :)
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the bottom line also include other media and not just internet ya
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Look at the ST forum, good examples of astroturfing.
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MPs public dialogue also astroturfing.
Why so, with regard to check and balance, i once asked my MP in an invited dialogue which i am involved in the lower young percentile group to participate. The answer is....
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Originally posted by Rock^Star:
Look at the ST forum, good examples of astroturfing.
ST forum is a good guage of the ground.
If there is a sudden deluge of "good" letters, then you know that there is a fair bit of genuine unhappiness on the ground.
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vocab level up~
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Originally posted by FireIce:
vocab level up~
Elections coming.
Soon, you can learn the words like "inveigle" or "obfuscate".
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Originally posted by Veggie Bao:
So clever.
Since the mainstream traditional media are closely controlled by the government, and the online world is the only realm where they cannot excercise total control, they have taken a very clever approach. I have to complement them.
They deliberately create a head on clash.
Using the traditional media, they label the online chatter as "astroturfing" to discredit them.
It is written extensively in the newspaper today.
From now onwards, all kinds of online criticism will be dismissed as "astroturfing"
It's so clever.
This includes the websites of PAP. hee heee heeee!What is new? they have been treating locals as their enemies. They are fast in counterattacking on facts and truth presented by locals all the while.
To them the facts and truth hurt badly, bruise their fragile ego.
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Originally posted by Dondontan:
This includes the websites of PAP. hee heee heeee!What is new? they have been treating locals as their enemies. They are fast in counterattacking on facts and truth presented by locals all the while.
To them the facts and truth hurt badly, bruise their fragile ego.
they still have ego meh??? i thot they long long ago, already forgo their egos liao, without any competition, what ego are you talking about