Astroturfing

American  

[as-truh-turf-ing] / ˈæs trəˌtɜrf ɪŋ /

noun

1. the act or process of installing Astroturf on a surface.

2. (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.

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astroturfing British  

/ ˈæstrəʊˌtɜːfɪŋ /

noun

1. a PR tactic used in politics and advertising in which actors are paid to display overt and apparently spontaneous grassroots support for a particular product, policy, or event

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Usage

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.

Other Word Forms

• astroturfer noun

Etymology

Origin of Astroturfing

First recorded in 1970–75; Astroturf + -ing ¹

Example Sentences

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