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Digital Astroturfing: Definition, typology, and countermeasures.
- 1. Digital Astroturfing: Definition,typology, and countermeasures Marko Kovic1; Adrian Rauchfleisch2; Marc Sele3 May 11, 2016 ZIPAR Zurich Institute of Public Affairs Research 1 ZIPAR / marko.kovic@zipar.org 2 ZIPAR; Institute of Mass Communication and Media Research, University of Zurich 3 ZIPAR
- 2. ZIPAROutline What I’m aboutto talk about
- 3. ZIPAROutline What I’m aboutto talk about We need to get Digital Astroturfing right, conceptually.
- 4. ZIPAROutline What I’m aboutto talk about We need to get Digital Astroturfing right, conceptually. Definition
- 5. ZIPAROutline What I’m aboutto talk about We need to get Digital Astroturfing right, conceptually. Definition Typology
- 6. ZIPAROutline What I’m aboutto talk about We need to get Digital Astroturfing right, conceptually. Definition Typology Repertoires
- 7. ZIPAROutline What I’m aboutto talk about We need to get Digital Astroturfing right, conceptually. Definition Typology Repertoires Countermeasures
- 8. ZIPAROutline What I’m aboutto talk about We need to get Digital Astroturfing right, conceptually. Definition Typology Repertoires Countermeasures Research prospects
- 9. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing
- 10. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing
- 11. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing During his 2012 presidential campaign, Mitt Romney gained more than 100,000 Twitter followers in a single weekend, despite averaging only 4,000 new followers a day previously. (His campaign denied having bought any fakes.) The Week, «Inside a counterfeit Facebook farm».
- 12. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing
- 13. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing In another governor’s race, in Tabasco, Sepúlveda set up fake Facebook accounts of gay men claiming to back a conservative Catholic candidate representing the PAN, a stunt designed to alienate his base.
- 14. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing
- 15. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing I found her through the Anonymous International leak, which included emails she had sent to her bosses, reporting on the pro-Putin comments she left on sites like The Blaze and Politico. One of her assignments had been to write an essay from the point of view of an average American woman.
- 16. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing Figure: Freedom House, «China’s growing army of paid internet commentators».
- 17. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing Private citizens are paid by the government to pretend to be “ordinary” netizens while in fact promoting the CCP line and seeking, in a nontransparent fashion, to guide public opinion in a particular direction.
- 18. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing These examples are very different from each other.
- 19. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing These examples are very different from each other. Yet, they have some things in common:
- 20. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing These examples are very different from each other. Yet, they have some things in common: It’s about online activities.
- 21. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing These examples are very different from each other. Yet, they have some things in common: It’s about online activities. They are initiated by political actors.
- 22. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing These examples are very different from each other. Yet, they have some things in common: It’s about online activities. They are initiated by political actors. They are deceptive.
- 23. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing These examples are very different from each other. Yet, they have some things in common: It’s about online activities. They are initiated by political actors. They are deceptive. They’re not jokes, but have real political consequences!
- 24. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing These examples are very different from each other. Yet, they have some things in common: It’s about online activities. They are initiated by political actors. They are deceptive. They’re not jokes, but have real political consequences!
- 25. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing These examples are very different from each other. Yet, they have some things in common: It’s about online activities. They are initiated by political actors. They are deceptive. They’re not jokes, but have real political consequences! These are all examples of Digital Astroturfing.
- 26. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing
- 27. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing
- 28. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing Digital Astroturfing matters:
- 29. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing Digital Astroturfing matters: Online activities are a big part of modern politics.
- 30. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing Digital Astroturfing matters: Online activities are a big part of modern politics. The Internet has greatly reduced transition costs for many forms of political activity.
- 31. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing Digital Astroturfing matters: Online activities are a big part of modern politics. The Internet has greatly reduced transition costs for many forms of political activity. The Internet is fertile ground for bottom-up political activity.
- 32. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing Digital Astroturfing matters: Online activities are a big part of modern politics. The Internet has greatly reduced transition costs for many forms of political activity. The Internet is fertile ground for bottom-up political activity. Digital Astroturfing is cunning political deception.
- 33. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing Digital Astroturfing matters: Online activities are a big part of modern politics. The Internet has greatly reduced transition costs for many forms of political activity. The Internet is fertile ground for bottom-up political activity. Digital Astroturfing is cunning political deception. It fools us into believing «the people» are expressing themselves.
- 34. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing Digital Astroturfing matters: Online activities are a big part of modern politics. The Internet has greatly reduced transition costs for many forms of political activity. The Internet is fertile ground for bottom-up political activity. Digital Astroturfing is cunning political deception. It fools us into believing «the people» are expressing themselves. If we want to do something about Digital Astroturfing, we need to think about digital astroturfing in a systematic way.
- 35. ZIPARIntroduction We need aclear concept of Digital Astroturfing Digital Astroturfing matters: Online activities are a big part of modern politics. The Internet has greatly reduced transition costs for many forms of political activity. The Internet is fertile ground for bottom-up political activity. Digital Astroturfing is cunning political deception. It fools us into believing «the people» are expressing themselves. If we want to do something about Digital Astroturfing, we need to think about digital astroturfing in a systematic way. This paper offers a framework that does just that.
- 36. ZIPARDefinition What Digital Astroturfingis and isn’t
- 37. ZIPARDefinition What Digital Astroturfingis and isn’t A complete definition of Digital Astroturfing:
- 38. ZIPARDefinition What Digital Astroturfingis and isn’t A complete definition of Digital Astroturfing: Digital astroturfing is a form of manufactured, deceptive and strategic top-down activity on the Internet initiated by political actors that mimics bottom-up activity by autonomous individuals.
- 39. ZIPARDefinition What Digital Astroturfingis and isn’t Let’s break that down:
- 40. ZIPARDefinition What Digital Astroturfingis and isn’t Let’s break that down: Manufactured
- 41. ZIPARDefinition What Digital Astroturfingis and isn’t Let’s break that down: Manufactured Deceptive
- 42. ZIPARDefinition What Digital Astroturfingis and isn’t Let’s break that down: Manufactured Deceptive Strategic
- 43. ZIPARDefinition What Digital Astroturfingis and isn’t Let’s break that down: Manufactured Deceptive Strategic Top-down; political actors
- 44. ZIPARDefinition What Digital Astroturfingis and isn’t Let’s break that down: Manufactured Deceptive Strategic Top-down; political actors mimicry
- 45. ZIPARDefinition What Digital Astroturfingis and isn’t Let’s break that down: Manufactured Deceptive Strategic Top-down; political actors mimicry autonomous individuals
- 46. ZIPARDefinition What Digital Astroturfingis and isn’t Digital Astroturfing is not the same as:
- 47. ZIPARDefinition What Digital Astroturfingis and isn’t Digital Astroturfing is not the same as: Trolling
- 48. ZIPARDefinition What Digital Astroturfingis and isn’t Digital Astroturfing is not the same as: Trolling Trolls troll for the sake of trolling; they are not agents.
- 49. ZIPARDefinition What Digital Astroturfingis and isn’t Digital Astroturfing is not the same as: Trolling Trolls troll for the sake of trolling; they are not agents. Regular Astroturfing
- 50. ZIPARDefinition What Digital Astroturfingis and isn’t Digital Astroturfing is not the same as: Trolling Trolls troll for the sake of trolling; they are not agents. Regular Astroturfing Regular astroturfing is less clear-cut.
- 51. ZIPARTypology Different flavors ofDigital Astroturfing
- 52. ZIPARTypology Different flavors ofDigital Astroturfing There are three type-relevant dimensions:
- 53. ZIPARTypology Different flavors ofDigital Astroturfing There are three type-relevant dimensions: The target of the Digital Astroturfing effort.
- 54. ZIPARTypology Different flavors ofDigital Astroturfing There are three type-relevant dimensions: The target of the Digital Astroturfing effort. The public
- 55. ZIPARTypology Different flavors ofDigital Astroturfing There are three type-relevant dimensions: The target of the Digital Astroturfing effort. The public Other political actors
- 56. ZIPARTypology Different flavors ofDigital Astroturfing There are three type-relevant dimensions: The target of the Digital Astroturfing effort. The public Other political actors The initiating actor.
- 57. ZIPARTypology Different flavors ofDigital Astroturfing There are three type-relevant dimensions: The target of the Digital Astroturfing effort. The public Other political actors The initiating actor. Government
- 58. ZIPARTypology Different flavors ofDigital Astroturfing There are three type-relevant dimensions: The target of the Digital Astroturfing effort. The public Other political actors The initiating actor. Government Political party
- 59. ZIPARTypology Different flavors ofDigital Astroturfing There are three type-relevant dimensions: The target of the Digital Astroturfing effort. The public Other political actors The initiating actor. Government Political party Individual politician
- 60. ZIPARTypology Different flavors ofDigital Astroturfing There are three type-relevant dimensions: The target of the Digital Astroturfing effort. The public Other political actors The initiating actor. Government Political party Individual politician Interest group
- 61. ZIPARTypology Different flavors ofDigital Astroturfing There are three type-relevant dimensions: The target of the Digital Astroturfing effort. The public Other political actors The initiating actor. Government Political party Individual politician Interest group The goal of the Digital Astroturfing effort.
- 62. ZIPARTypology Different flavors ofDigital Astroturfing There are three type-relevant dimensions: The target of the Digital Astroturfing effort. The public Other political actors The initiating actor. Government Political party Individual politician Interest group The goal of the Digital Astroturfing effort. Support for / opposition to policy
- 63. ZIPARTypology Different flavors ofDigital Astroturfing There are three type-relevant dimensions: The target of the Digital Astroturfing effort. The public Other political actors The initiating actor. Government Political party Individual politician Interest group The goal of the Digital Astroturfing effort. Support for / opposition to policy Support for / opposition to political actors
- 64. ZIPARTypology Different flavors ofDigital Astroturfing Target Initiating political actor Goal: Support for or opposition to: policy political actors The public Government 1 2 Political party 3 4 Individual politician 5 6 Interest group 7 8 Political actors Government 9 10 Political party 11 12 Individual politician 13 14 Interest group 15 16
- 65. ZIPARRepertoires The toolset ofDigital Astroturfing
- 66. ZIPARRepertoires The toolset ofDigital Astroturfing The ways in which Digital Astroturfing manifests can be described in terms of three dimensions:
- 67. ZIPARRepertoires The toolset ofDigital Astroturfing The ways in which Digital Astroturfing manifests can be described in terms of three dimensions: Tools
- 68. ZIPARRepertoires The toolset ofDigital Astroturfing The ways in which Digital Astroturfing manifests can be described in terms of three dimensions: Tools Venues
- 69. ZIPARRepertoires The toolset ofDigital Astroturfing The ways in which Digital Astroturfing manifests can be described in terms of three dimensions: Tools Venues Actions
- 70. ZIPARRepertoires The toolset ofDigital Astroturfing Tools Venues Actions sock puppets social media creating content click farms websites signaling (dis-)approval sympathizers comment sections paid supporters direct messages
- 71. ZIPARCountermeasures How to curbDigital Astroturfing
- 72. ZIPARCountermeasures How to curbDigital Astroturfing Normatively, Digital Astroturfing is problematic.
- 73. ZIPARCountermeasures How to curbDigital Astroturfing Normatively, Digital Astroturfing is problematic. There are two general strategies for fighting Digital Astroturfing:
- 74. ZIPARCountermeasures How to curbDigital Astroturfing Normatively, Digital Astroturfing is problematic. There are two general strategies for fighting Digital Astroturfing: Restrictive countermeasures
- 75. ZIPARCountermeasures How to curbDigital Astroturfing Normatively, Digital Astroturfing is problematic. There are two general strategies for fighting Digital Astroturfing: Restrictive countermeasures Incentivizing countermeasures
- 76. ZIPARCountermeasures How to curbDigital Astroturfing Restrictive vs. incentivizing countermeasures:
- 77. ZIPARCountermeasures How to curbDigital Astroturfing Restrictive vs. incentivizing countermeasures: Restrictive: Limit activities.
- 78. ZIPARCountermeasures How to curbDigital Astroturfing Restrictive vs. incentivizing countermeasures: Restrictive: Limit activities. Incentivizing: Promote honesty.
- 79. ZIPARCountermeasures How to curbDigital Astroturfing Restrictive vs. incentivizing countermeasures: Restrictive: Limit activities. Incentivizing: Promote honesty. E.g., through nudging.
- 80. ZIPARCountermeasures How to curbDigital Astroturfing Restrictive vs. incentivizing countermeasures: Restrictive: Limit activities. Incentivizing: Promote honesty. E.g., through nudging. Generally, incentives are preferable to restrictions.
- 81. ZIPARCountermeasures How to curbDigital Astroturfing Restrictive vs. incentivizing countermeasures: Restrictive: Limit activities. Incentivizing: Promote honesty. E.g., through nudging. Generally, incentives are preferable to restrictions. Restrictions are not actually solutions.
- 82. ZIPARResearch prospects Dead onarrival?
- 83. ZIPARResearch prospects Dead onarrival? Research on Digital Astroturfing is inherently difficult.
- 84. ZIPARResearch prospects Dead onarrival? Research on Digital Astroturfing is inherently difficult. Digital Astroturfing is clandestine activity.
- 85. ZIPARResearch prospects Dead onarrival? Research on Digital Astroturfing is inherently difficult. Digital Astroturfing is clandestine activity. Purely inductive case-study research is not enough.
- 86. ZIPARResearch prospects Dead onarrival? Research on Digital Astroturfing is inherently difficult. Digital Astroturfing is clandestine activity. Purely inductive case-study research is not enough. E.g., because of the «survival bias».
- 87. ZIPARResearch prospects Dead onarrival? Research on Digital Astroturfing is inherently difficult. Digital Astroturfing is clandestine activity. Purely inductive case-study research is not enough. E.g., because of the «survival bias». We need a conceptual framework that acts as a compass.
- 88. ZIPARResearch prospects Dead onarrival? Research on Digital Astroturfing is inherently difficult. Digital Astroturfing is clandestine activity. Purely inductive case-study research is not enough. E.g., because of the «survival bias». We need a conceptual framework that acts as a compass. We need different research designs:
- 89. ZIPARResearch prospects Dead onarrival? Research on Digital Astroturfing is inherently difficult. Digital Astroturfing is clandestine activity. Purely inductive case-study research is not enough. E.g., because of the «survival bias». We need a conceptual framework that acts as a compass. We need different research designs: Case studies to document instances of Digital Astroturfing.
- 90. ZIPARResearch prospects Dead onarrival? Research on Digital Astroturfing is inherently difficult. Digital Astroturfing is clandestine activity. Purely inductive case-study research is not enough. E.g., because of the «survival bias». We need a conceptual framework that acts as a compass. We need different research designs: Case studies to document instances of Digital Astroturfing. Algorithmic means to identify Digital Astroturfing.
- 91. ZIPARResearch prospects Dead onarrival? Research on Digital Astroturfing is inherently difficult. Digital Astroturfing is clandestine activity. Purely inductive case-study research is not enough. E.g., because of the «survival bias». We need a conceptual framework that acts as a compass. We need different research designs: Case studies to document instances of Digital Astroturfing. Algorithmic means to identify Digital Astroturfing. Micro-level testing of incentive effectiveness.
- 92. ZIPARResearch prospects Dead onarrival? Research on Digital Astroturfing is inherently difficult. Digital Astroturfing is clandestine activity. Purely inductive case-study research is not enough. E.g., because of the «survival bias». We need a conceptual framework that acts as a compass. We need different research designs: Case studies to document instances of Digital Astroturfing. Algorithmic means to identify Digital Astroturfing. Micro-level testing of incentive effectiveness. We need to work with the operators of the relevant venues.
- 93. ZIPARThank you Thanks foryour attention!