statism watch

Astroturfing (v.): An artificially-manufactured political movement designed to give the appearance of grass roots activism. Campaigns & Elections magazine defined 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.” Unlike natural grassroots campaigns which are people-rich and money-poor, an astroturf campaign tends to be the opposiite, well-funded but with little actual support from voters.

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Michael Geist, MichaelGeist.ca
June 16, 2010

The copyright lobby, almost certainly led by the Canadian Recording Industry Association, has launched a major astroturf campaign in which it hopes to enlist company employees to register their support for Bill C-32 and to criticize articles or comments that take issue with elements of the proposed legislation. The effort, which even includes paid placement of headlines on Bourque.com, is still shrouded in some secrecy. A member list, which featured many record company executives, has now disappeared from public view. Requests to identify who is behind the site have been stonewalled thus far, with both ACTRA and AFM Canada explicitly stating they are not part of the site (this is no surprise since most creator groups have been critical of C-32).

The heart of the site (which requires full registration) is a daily action item page that encourages users to “make a difference, everyday.” Today’s list of 10 items is a mix of suggested tweets, blog comments, and newspaper article feedback. Each items includes instructions for what should be done and quick link to the target site. For example, users are asked to respond on Twitter to re-tweets of an op-ed by Dalhousie law professor Graham Reynolds. The suggested response is “As an employee in entertainment, this Bill will protect your livelihood” or “The discussion around DRMs is largely fear mongering.” Other suggested twitter activity includes twittering in support of James Moore and his comment that the Chamber of Commerce represents the best interests of consumers or to start following MPs on Twitter (in the hope they will follow back and later see astroturfed tweets).

The site also encourages posting comments on a wide range of articles and interviews. For example, users are encouraged to comment on a Torontoist article on C-32 with the following points:

• The article completely overstates the expected prevalence of DRMs
• DRMs have faded quickly from the music industry- why would producers/artists hide their work?
• There are a whole list of exceptions in the Bill, none of which Michael Geist and his Bit Torrent followers acknowledge

A Calgary Herald op-ed on the concerns with C-32 generates the following suggested response:

• Artists, other content creators, and the people who invest in them deserve a law that protects their work from theft and unauthorized use on the Internet;
• Canada has become a global destination of choice for the operators of pirate websites;
• Bill C-32 is a good first step in creating balanced copyright laws for Canada;

There are suggested responses to audio interviews as well. For an interview CRIA’s Graham Henderson did on CBC Radio, users are encouraged to “listen to the interview, share it with your friends on Facebook, link to it on your Twitter account and post a comment in the comment section underneath the audio file.” As for Industry Minister Tony Clement’s interview on Search Engine, users are encouraged to post comments on the TVO site stating:

• TPMs are used to help creators of digital content — books, games, movies, software and music — to protect their creations from unauthorized copying;
• TPMs also enable innovative new digital offerings that give consumers more choice in how they buy digital content;
• For about $10 a month, music fans can access literally millions of songs on streaming music services. But they don’t own the songs;
• Other fans prefer TPM-free a la carte downloads for about $10 an album. Without TPMs, it simply would not be possible to offer new choices to consumers;
• The measures in Bill C-32, the government’s copyright reform legislation, add a measure of legal protection against breaking “digital locks.” Without these provisions, digital content would effectively lose all protection, and innovative digital offerings would disappear. The creators of music, books, games, movies, and software — and their investors — would be left high and dry.

All of these are just today’s instructions, with new activities promised on a daily basis. This secret astroturf effort is unlikely to fool many people, but it is worth monitoring and serves as a useful reminder that Canadians seeking fair copyright in Canada will need to ensure that their voices are heard and not drowned out by this organized, shadowy campaign.

Source | See also under Media: Internet ‘kill switch’ proposed for US President | U.S. seeks international organization in battle against cyber terror | Homeland Security’s Cyber Bill Would Codify Executive Emergency Powers | Gaza flotilla attack: activist releases new footage | Pentagon hunts WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in bid to gag website | ‘Fox News North’? 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You’re A Terrorist | EU Parliament votes down ACTA global copyright resolution by overwhelming margin | Goldman appeals CanWest, Shaw deal | Cyber-bullying cases put heat on Google, Facebook | North Korean worker executed for passing on news | Cyberwar Hype Intended to Destroy the Open Internet | UK: Open Wi-Fi ‘outlawed’ by Digital Economy Bill | Cryptome.org Leaks Microsoft Online Surveillance Guide, MS Demands Takedown Under Copyright Law | Italy Convicts Google Execs over Youtube Video of Downs Syndrome Boy | China launches interview requirement, licensing for personal websites | Cabinet ministers’ offices regularly interfere in access to information requests, says Tory staffer | ACTA Internet Chapter Leaks: Renegotiates WIPO, Sets 3 Strikes as Model | Google Books Fosters Intellectual, Legal Crossroads | Google Bans Sale of DVD Critical Of Obama Administration | US media omission: Iran calls for global nuclear disarmament | EU Already Has A ‘Public/Private’ IP Observatory To Watch For Copyright Infringement Online | Shaw Cable moves for acquisition of controlling share in Canwest Global | Google shuts down music blogs without warning | Activists Shut Down Australian Government Websites in Internet Filter Protest | ACTA Is Called An ‘Executive Agreement’ To Implement Restrictive Copyright With Less Hassle Than A Treaty | HST ad campaign debuts in Ontario | Google, NSA may team up to probe cyberattacks | Men at Work plagiarized Kookaburra tune, Australian court rules | Hollywood loses landmark copyright case in Australia | Police want backdoor to Web users’ private data | Time Magazine Pushes Draconian Internet Licensing Plan | UN agency calls for global cyberwarfare treaty, ‘driver’s license’ for Web user | CBC’s new licencing plan: Pay to Print, Email, and Blog, and outsource enforcement to American Copyright Digital Rights Bounty Hunters | ACTA One Step Closer To Being Done; Concerns About Transparency Ignored | Pentagon calls for ‘Office of Strategic Deception’ | Internet companies voice alarm over Italian copyright law | UK MPs frozen out of super-secret ACTA copyright talks | The Toronto 18 Publication Ban: Silence affects the core of justice | China Google Hack Exploited Security Gaps Introduced By State Surveillance Provisions | Obama Information Czar Calls For Banning Free Speech | China tells web companies to obey controls | Google Considers Leaving China If China Will Not Allow Uncensored Search | Reading Between The Still Secret Lines Of The ACTA Negotiations | Privacy no longer a social norm, says Facebook founder | Tipping point at CanWest | See more in The Memory Hole — Media

This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 16th, 2010 at 9:58 am and is filed under culture, media, prohibitions, propaganda, provocation. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.