the act or process of installing Astroturf on a surface.
(usually lowercase) the deceptive tactic of simulating grassroots support for a product, cause, etc., undertaken by people or organizations with an interest in shaping public opinion.
In some countries astroturfing is banned, and this includes sponsored blog posts.
What does astroturfing mean? Astroturfing is a slang term for the act of faking the appearance of popular support for something, such as a cause or product. A person who does this can be called an astroturfer. These words come from Astroturf, the trademarked brand name for a type of artificial surface used for sports fields that’s supposed to look and feel like grass. (Astroturfing can also be used to refer to the process of covering a field with Astroturf. In this case, it’s often capitalized.)Example: One clue that orchestrated astroturfing is happening is that a lot of posts about a topic come from new accounts with usernames that look like they were randomly generated.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Astroturfing can make it look like a particular campaign was created by ordinary people, when in reality, it was made to support an organization that will benefit from the campaign.
From Slate • Aug. 13, 2018
“It isn’t Astroturfing — they’re throwing seeds and fertilizer onto social media,” said Mr. Kelly.
From New York Times • Oct. 9, 2017
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
