Posts tagged Astroturf

Washington’s Astroturf Economy
Tim Karr
November 18, 2009

Astroturf. You may have heard the word or even seen the fake grassroots in action.

Astroturf groups are front operations that take corporate money to promote an industry's policy agenda, covering their tracks behind phony grassroots Web façades.

AT&T Boss Asks Employees to Fake It
Tim Karr
October 20, 2009

AT&T has "asked' its employees to fake it in the fight against Net Neutrality.

The company’s top policy officer sent a memo to workers on Monday urging them to hide their company affiliation before posting anti-Net Neutrality comments to the Federal Communication Commission’s Web site.

Does Astroturf Ever Die?
Tim Karr
October 16, 2009

How do we rid Washington of astroturf? It’s a blight that’s spread over the Capitol like kudzu, smothering genuine public debate under a tangle of misinformation.

Banned by RedState for Exposing Astroturf
Phillip Dampier
October 6, 2009

I like to think our issues are neither right nor left. Net Neutrality preserves freedom of speech from provider interference whether you are Glenn Beck or Michael Moore. Internet Overcharging costs conservatives as much money as it does liberals.

The Washington Post Needs to Come Clean on Net Neutrality
Tim Karr
October 5, 2009

A Washington Post blog post published Monday hits on one central reason for making Net Neutrality the law.

Arguments Against Net Neutrality Grow Mold
Tim Karr
October 1, 2009

What does the debate over Net Neutrality have in common with a zombie horror flick? As the phone and cable companies send out a brainless horde of shills and lobbyists, it's not hard to make the connection.

Industry Nonsense on Net Neutrality
Megan Tady
September 25, 2009

The industry frenzy has begun. Big phone and cable companies are frantically grasping at anything they can lob against Net Neutrality since the FCC’s announcement Monday that it would expand rules to protect the principle.

Net Neutrality Paranoia an Insult to Conservatives
Phillip Dampier
September 11, 2009

I usually don’t spend a whole lot of time debunking the more crazy conspiracy theories about Net Neutrality because I presume most online users are smart enough not to be suckered into sideshow distractions, usually paid for by providers trying to wave shiny keys at consumers to get them to support things exactly opposite their own best interests.

Will ‘Astroturf’ Groups Block Net Neutrality Reform?
Megan Tady
September 3, 2009

Chris, McGreal, a reporter for Britain's Guardian newspaper, took to the road last month to report on how Americans living along Route 66--made famous in John Steinbeck's fictional Grapes of Wrath journey--are faring during the recession.

NYT: Time to Make Net Neutrality the Law
Tim Karr
August 29, 2009

The New York Times gets Net Neutrality right again, and again, and again. In their fourth editorial in support of Net Neutrality the newspaper’s editors write:

Keep Off the Astroturf
Tim Karr
August 19, 2009

If you haven't been paying attention to the rise of Astroturf in Washington, in the media and at your local town hall meeting, now's the time to tune in.

Astroturf front groups have been everywhere this summer -- spreading misinformation about health care reform, carbon emission caps and financial regulation.

Astroturf Groups Try to Enlist Conservatives to Oppose Net Neutrality
Phillip Dampier
August 5, 2009

Earlier this year, some Stop the Cap! readers in North Carolina who attended the hearings on a pro-telecom (actually it was written by them) piece of legislation designed to stall statewide municipal broadband competition encountered strange protests from conservative groups arriving on buses.