Sometimes I can be a bit flippant, off the cuff, sassy, etc- call it what you will- but not today.
The other day Robb ran a thread about an Astroturf letter that was being circulated among some community papers, whereupon I decided to write each paper and give them a heads up. Below is an editorial that appeared in one of the papers today- and it’s really a two for one for our side, as you'll read.
One last word: I offer no apologizes about my near vitriolic stance on the Republican Party- Simply put I think their ideas lean seriously toward fascism- however many little ‘r’ republicans are decent folks who just have a different (read: uneducated) view of the role of government than we do. They’re not all freepers and wingnut loonies- however I honestly don’t think they realize just how badly they’re being duped and misled by the people who really run their party; that said I think EVERY AMERICAN is hurt by the propagation of Astroturf campaigns. Now that’s as bipartisan as you’re EVER going to see me on here.
Thanks to Robb for being so sharp on the uptake and thanks to DU for making this possible; now on to the Editorial.
------------------------------------------------
Some people will try to pull the wool over your eyes The Letters to the Editor section of community newspapers should be one of the purest sources for ordinary American citizens' opinions and views. It should be a place where writers can express their thoughts and feelings and readers can have dialogue and experience a spectrum of opinions as diverse as humanity itself.
There aren't many rules for what writers can talk about in our letters section. We encourage people who read our newspaper to express their sincerest opinions about everything from what's happening in their neighborhood to what's happening on the other side of the world.The operative word in that last sentence was "sincerest." We know that there are people who want to misuse opinion pages. That's probably been happening since the first Letters to the Editor section was published.
For years, the News-Journal has had a policy against publishing "form letters." We'll call or e-mail writers to verify that the person whose name appears on a letter is truly the person who wrote the letters. We go to great lengths to ensure that the person whose name appears on a letter really exists. But, sometimes we still get burned and it's getting easier for those who misuse the trust of Opinion Pages to get their letters past the watchful eyes of editors. Why? It's called the Internet and this new form of misrepresenting the opinions of the American people and manipulating the free exchange of ideas is being called Astroturf. "Campaigns & Elections" magazine defines Astroturf as a "grassroots program that involves the instant manufacturing of public support for a point of view in which either uninformed activists are recruited or means of deception are used to recruit them."
The News-Journal received an e-mail this week from a reader who was letting us know that we had probably been victim of an "Astroturf." The reader said that a letter we published from Kim Hester - an American claiming to now live in Dhahran, Saudia Arabia - praising the war in Iraq - had been published in 23 other newspapers across the nation.
An Internet Google search revealed that at least that many other newspapers had published this letter. Perhaps Hester - really wanting to express his opinions on the war - just sent his letter to many different newspapers between California and Kentucky.
Either way, in researching whether Hester's letter was Astroturf, the News-Journal editorial department realized that it had been victim of an absolutely verifiable Astroturf campaign in January when we published a letter that began: "When it comes to the economy, President Bush is demonstrating genuine leadership. The economic growth package he recently proposed takes us in the right direction by accelerating the successful tax cuts of 2001, providing marriage penalty relief and providing incentives for individuals and small businesses to save and invest ..." from Katrina Bradley-Ison of West Liberty.
That letter has been traced to the Republican Party's Web site, goteamleader.com, and has been published in many newspapers across the country. At the Web site, supporters are encouraged to submit identically worded letters to several newspapers at the same time.
The News-Journal wants its readers to know that from time to time we receive letters that are - at the least - submitted to us under an implied false pretense. We will be redoubling our efforts to ensure that our Letters to the Editor section is indeed the legitimate and sincere opinions of individual writers.
We have learned that there are several tools available to us in screening letters for possible Astroturf and we will be using these tools to ensure that the free exchange of ideas is honest and sincere in the Central Kentucky News-Journal.
We want your letters to the editor but we want the writing to be your original words and your individual thoughts - not mass-produced by those trying to usurp public opinion to win an ideological position.
http://www.cknj.com/articles/2003/12/07/opinion/01editorial.txt
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
