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Thread: Astroturf

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    Astroturf

    Interesting read for most of the posters in speakers corner.i posted this earlier today but it seemed to disappear.


    Here's a helpful concept from investigative journalist Sharyl Attkisson. In an excellent TED talk, she calls it "astroturf" -- a false impression of grassroots or otherwise widespread support for an idea, cause, or product. The technique is rampant and of course the Internet is peerless in manipulating an impression of consensus to steamroll public opinion and shut down skepticism.

    Attkisson identifies some "hallmarks" of astroturf and they all ring bells. First is
    "inflammatory language" -- "crank, quack, nutty, lies, paranoid, pseudo, and conspiracy" -- that attacks people rather than honestly critiquing ideas. "Astroturfers often claim to debunk 'myths' that aren't myths at all. Use of the charged language tests well."

    "Beware when interests attack an issue by controversializing or attacking the people, personalities, and organizations surrounding it rather than addressing the facts." Yes.

    "And most of all, astroturfers tend to reserve all of their public skepticism for those exposing wrongdoing rather than the wrongdoers. In other words, instead of questioning authority, they question those who question authority." Exactly.

    "Once you know what to look for," she says, "you'll begin to recognize it everywhere." Yep.

    She gives the example of Wikipedia, where agenda-driven editors instantly leap to "correct" any change to a page dealing with a subject they're devoted to policing. She makes no mention of debates about evolution, but imagine the naïve individual who consults, let's say, the Wiki page devoted to bashing intelligent design and ID's advocates.

    I would add another hallmark, which is the amount of work that must be done by sarcasm and attitude over sober argument. See as an example mathematician Jason Rosenhouse's recent review of Doug Axe's book Undeniable. I had missed this, but it came across my desk this morning.

    In a given piece of writing, you could try the following experiment. Subtract the snark, the insults, the name-calling, the false attributions of "conspiracy" thinking, the appeals to authority, and when you're done, see if you've got anything left. In this case, the answer is "not much." Rosenhouse actually says, "I won't bother with Axe's arguments, such as they are, for dismissing natural selection." He won't bother! At least he's up front about it.

    Rosenhouse accuses Axe of doing exactly what Rosenhouse himself does. Of presumed evidence for Darwinism, he says, Axe "laughs at it. Dismisses it out of hand." If Dr. Axe's two decades of extremely meticulous peer-reviewed lab research on protein evolution is reasonably equated with "laughter" or "out of hand" dismissal, then I guess so. "Would that we were all so impetuous in our investigations," says a colleague who points this out to me.

    The very fact that Axe makes his research accessible to a general audience, no mean feat, is held against him -- "reads far more like standard creationist propaganda than it does a work of science." Ah yes, the "creationist" libel. They can never leave that out.

    Speaking of creationism, Attkisson alludes to what I'd call a final hallmark of astroturf, another favorite of Darwinists, which is the appeal to vanity. She says, "People hear something's a myth, maybe they find it on Snopes, and they instantly declare themselves too smart to fall for it." Way too smart. This, I'm convinced, is the reason that "creationists" and "creationism" are so habitually, robotically linked with ID by Darwinist astroturfers. The purpose is to evade reasoned discussion by making your audience feel embarrassed at the prospect of being associated with a down-market demographic.

    With astroturf, the agenda reigns supreme. What happened to the search for truth? Darwinists are too smart for that.

    I'm on Twitter. Follow me @d_klinghoffer.

  2. #2
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    Astroturf was started with the tea party. The Koch brothers started the movement. It was fake from day one.

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    Quote Originally Posted by bsnub View Post
    Astroturf was started with the tea party. The Koch brothers started the movement. It was fake from day one.
    Did you even read the opinion? AstroTurf is not a movement and it was not started by the Koch brothers, it is an opinion by investigative journalist Sheryl Attkisson. You have been, as you quite frequently say, HAD

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    Weighing the vast alternatives.

    Challenging and questioning inquiry vacant of a prejudicial and conditioned disposition.

    Alas, I fear that most require an established institutional prerequisite to fuel their highly biased and manufactured mindset.

    No hope.

    Next...

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    Guys we've found the missing link

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    It looks as if the ID advocate is astroturfing with astroturf.

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    Quote Originally Posted by RPETER65
    "inflammatory language" -- "crank, quack, nutty, lies, paranoid, pseudo, ...." -- that attacks people rather than honestly critiquing ideas.
    Quote Originally Posted by RPETER65
    I would add another hallmark, which is the amount of work that must be done by sarcasm and attitude over sober argument.
    Quote Originally Posted by RPETER65
    In a given piece of writing, you could try the following experiment. Subtract the snark, the insults, the name-calling, the false attributions ..., the appeals to authority, and when you're done, see if you've got anything left.
    Quote Originally Posted by RPETER65
    alludes to what I'd call a final hallmark of astroturf, which is ... vanity
    Jeepers! Which of these things does not apply to Lulu?

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    I can't be arsed row turf up such innanity.

    I think no one can be so moronic as RPeter and therefore call him as a spambot/smeg or some other trol.

    Surely no adults believe in creationism, how do they account for dinosaurs?

    This is a hoot

    Quote Originally Posted by Latindancer View Post
    I just want the chance to use a bigger porridge bowl.

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    Quote Originally Posted by david44 View Post
    I can't be arsed row turf up such innanity.

    I think no one can be so moronic as RPeter and therefore call him as a spambot/smeg or some other trol.

    Surely no adults believe in creationism, how do they account for dinosaurs?

    This is a hoot

    Sorry to have to tell you but Believers in God and creation are by far the majority in the world.

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    There was a time reposting a previously binned post with no links would've resulted in a jailing.

    How the fuck does this moron keep getting away with it.

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    Quote Originally Posted by RPETER65 View Post
    Sorry to have to tell you but Believers in God and creation are by far the majority in the world.
    Sorry to have to tell you but they are outnumbered almost three to one by people who believe in Allah, Buddha, Hindu or even fuck all, you stupid person.

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    I thought Astraturf was an artificial grass football pitch that soccer players played footie on.

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    Quote Originally Posted by wasabi View Post
    I thought Astraturf was an artificial grass football pitch that soccer players played footie on.
    Me too.

    That, and a box that contained hash and a philosophy book.

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    It was eventually discarded in the U.K. because the losing team always blamed Astraturf for losing .
    Both sides played on the same pitch though.

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    I seem to remember Luton Town having one in the late 80's early 90's.

    I think they probably lost a lot. So the theory may be correct.

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    Quote Originally Posted by bsnub View Post
    Astroturf was started with the tea party. The Koch brothers started the movement. It was fake from day one.
    There is also "Astroturf Lobbying."

    I worked for a company in the 1990s in Washington DC that did this.

    If you followed politics back then you might have heard of them. The company was bought out but another company that got busted for making a lie (shock).

    We had to sign documents saying we wouldn't tell people what we or the company did.


    It was crap.

    But the owners made a lot of money. It's crap. They should be made illegal.

    I don't know if "Astroturf lobbying" exist anymore.

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    Quote Originally Posted by RPETER65
    investigative journalist Sharyl Attkisson. In an excellent TED talk, she calls it "astroturf"


    From vid info:

    Published on Feb 6, 2015
    In this eye-opening talk, veteran investigative journalist Sharyl Attkisson shows how astroturf, or fake grassroots movements funded by political, corporate, or other special interests very effectively manipulate and distort media messages.

    Sharyl Attkisson is an investigative journalist based in Washington D.C. She is currently writing a book entitled Stonewalled (Harper Collins), which addresses the unseen influences of corporations and special interests on the information and images the public receives every day in the news and elsewhere. For twenty years (through March 2014), Attkisson was a correspondent for CBS News. In 2013, she received an Emmy Award for Outstanding Investigative Journalism for her reporting on “The Business of Congress,” which included an undercover investigation into fundraising by Republican freshmen. She also received Emmy nominations in 2013 for Benghazi: Dying for Security and Green Energy Going Red. Additionally, Attkisson received a 2013 Daytime Emmy Award as part of the CBS Sunday Morning team’s entry for Outstanding Morning Program for her report: “Washington Lobbying: K-Street Behind Closed Doors.” In September 2012, Attkisson also received an Emmy for Oustanding Investigative Journalism for the “Gunwalker: Fast and Furious” story. She received the RTNDA Edward R. Murrow Award for Excellence in Investigative Reporting for the same story. Attkisson received an Investigative Emmy Award in 2009 for her exclusive investigations into TARP and the bank bailout. She received an Investigative Emmy Award in 2002 for her series of exclusive reports about mismanagement at the Red Cross.

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    Quote Originally Posted by harrybarracuda View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by RPETER65 View Post
    Sorry to have to tell you but Believers in God and creation are by far the majority in the world.
    Sorry to have to tell you but they are outnumbered almost three to one by people who believe in Allah, Buddha, Hindu or even fuck all, you stupid person.


    And they all believe in a creator so what exactly is your point?

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    Quote Originally Posted by RPETER65 View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by harrybarracuda View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by RPETER65 View Post
    Sorry to have to tell you but Believers in God and creation are by far the majority in the world.
    Sorry to have to tell you but they are outnumbered almost three to one by people who believe in Allah, Buddha, Hindu or even fuck all, you stupid person.


    And they all believe in a creator so what exactly is your point?
    They don't believe in God and creation.

    You Jesus wheezers are in the minority.

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    Quote Originally Posted by RPETER65 View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by bsnub View Post
    Astroturf was started with the tea party. The Koch brothers started the movement. It was fake from day one.
    Did you even read the opinion? AstroTurf is not a movement and it was not started by the Koch brothers, it is an opinion by investigative journalist Sheryl Attkisson. You have been, as you quite frequently say, HAD
    It's old news you dickhead.

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