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

“Money where your mouth is” marches, countering claims of astroturfing, could encourage marchers to publicly donate to a cause while QR codes could urge witnesses and bystanders to join in.

From Salon

One of the tactics is "astroturfing" – or disguising an orchestrated campaign as a spontaneous up-swelling of public opinion.

From BBC

The widespread attacks on books are in reality a coordinated astroturfing campaign being fueled by deep-pocketed conservative groups that have built a network of activists to angrily disrupt school board meetings, attack educators and intimidate schools into bending to their will.

From Salon

Lead researcher Moustafa Ayad calls the practice an example of "astroturfing" - an online operation involving multiple accounts that falsely gives something the impression of wider grassroots support.

From BBC

This practice is sometimes called "astroturfing" - when the owner of several accounts uses the profiles they control to retweet content and amplify reach.

From BBC