# Astroturfing **Domain:** Political communication / Influence operations **Doc Type:** Developed Mechanism Node **Maturity:** Developed **Collection:** [[collections/Gamification|Gamification Collection]] ## Definition **Astroturfing** is the organized simulation of grassroots support, opposition, testimony, or attention while concealing the sponsorship or coordination behind it. It can involve front groups, paid participants, coordinated accounts, fabricated reviews, scripted letters, or manipulated engagement metrics. ## Significance Astroturfing attacks the inference from apparent participation to genuine distributed belief. It matters in a gamified public sphere because platforms and institutions often score visibility, trending, votes, comments, reports, and endorsements as if they represented independent actors. Not every coordinated campaign is astroturfing. Openly organized advocacy, party mobilization, union action, and public coalition work disclose their collective character. The decisive issues are concealed sponsorship, simulated independence, and the intended misreading of provenance. ## Sources - U.S. Federal Trade Commission, [Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising](https://www.ftc.gov/legal-library/browse/federal-register-notices/guides-concerning-use-endorsements-testimonials-advertising) - NATO Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence, [Robotrolling and manipulation research](https://stratcomcoe.org/publications) ## Routes [[wiki/Crowd-for-Hire|Crowd-for-Hire]] · [[wiki/Participatory Propaganda|Participatory Propaganda]] · [[wiki/Sybil Continuants|Sybil Continuants]] · [[wiki/Testimonial Injustice|Testimonial Injustice]]