We made a difference in our paper's "Astroturf" LTTE policy

[SharonAnn]

Our local paper (Knoxville News Sentinel) has had a problem with letting the phony RNC Astroturf letters appear in their LTTE section. 10 days ago there was one about * and his "leadership" on NCLB. I called them when I read it in the afternoon (after using Google to find other LTTE with exactly the same wording in other newspapers) to complain. I was told that ino one else had called to complain and that these tings just "slip through". Since I've been calling them and emailing them on this problem for over 6 months i told them I haven't seen any improvement in this area.

Then, I sent an email to two email lists in our area and several people contacted the nespaper with emails and/or calls. And our actions made a difference!

Today, the editor published this article:
----------------------

"Help us weed out phony grassroots letters

By JACK MCELROY, [e-mail]
March 21, 2004

The letter to the editor was succinct and to the point. "President Bush's leadership has improved education in America," the writer began, and in a few taut sentences, he cited facts and argued forcefully for the No Child Left Behind Act.

It was an ideal letter to the editor, clear, crisp and concise. We contacted the person who sent it - as we do all letter-writers - to confirm its authorship. Then, on March 12, we published the letter.
We had just been "astroturfed."

The letter may have looked like grassroots support for the president, but it actually was part of a campaign to blanket the nation's newspapers with manufactured opinion.

<snip>

From now on, anyone who submits an "astroturf" letter to the News Sentinel will be banned from having any letters published in the future.

We will do our best to keep these phonies out of the paper. But, if one slips by, please let us know."

Phony Astro-Turf Letters

http://tinyurl.com/2cmn3

[StClone]

1. Astro-turf via Artificial Intelligence

SharonAnn that's great work!

I walked into my local paper and requested a meeting with the editor and gave him copies of another letter and a link to visit to illustrate what was going on in the farming of "Astroturf."

A few days later he blasted the manufacturers of "public Opinion" by paid hucksters and Think Tanks. He vowed to make ever effort to avoid being had again. It not only laid out the scam but painted perpetrators as witless accomplices in an effort by the well-connected power brokers to contain and control public debate and fake positive vibes for the GOP and Cons.

Doing your part takes a little effort!

[mike1963]

2. Horray, way to go!!!

:D :toast: