astroturf means of a group created by a larger organisation (especially a corporation or political party), but presenting itself as a grassroots organisation. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 95 out of 100.
astroturf is pronounced /ˈæstɹoʊˌtɝf/.
Why “astroturf” is a great word
ASTROTURF — [Adjective] Describing a group or campaign that is artificially manufactured by a larger organization but deceptively presented as a spontaneous, grassroots movement. The term is a metaphor from *AstroTurf*, the proprietary name for synthetic grass first installed in the Houston Astrodome in 1966, implying a fabricated substitute for the real thing. Unlike "grassroots" (which denotes genuinely organic, bottom-up support) or "lobbying" (which can be a transparent effort to influence), *astroturf* is a covert performance of populism. It is the identical, pre-printed letters arriving from a hundred different zip codes, the sudden eruption of a "citizen's group" with suspiciously polished talking points, or the synchronized outrage flooding a comments section—the political equivalent of a convincing plastic lawn, perpetually green and requiring no soil.
adj
- Of a group created by a larger organisation (especially a corporation or political party), but presenting itself as a grassroots organisation.“Can we assure readers that astroturf letters will not appear as letters in The Star? Unfortunately, no. At least a dozen Web sites from which astroturf can be generated have been identified. Many more exist.”
noun
- A synthetic material used in sports grounds as a durable substitute for natural grass.“And then there's AstroTurf. Invented in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, and patented by Monsanto in 1965, AstroTurf is the world's first synthetic turf used as a sports playing surface, coming to fame—and its name—when it was put into the Houston Astrodome in 1966.”
- A campaign designed to appear like a genuine popular (or grassroots) movement, that does not have such popular support.“An Astroturf campaign is a fake grassroots movement: it purports to be a spontaneous uprising of concerned citizens, but in reality it is founded and funded by elite interests. Some Astroturf campaigns have no grassroots component at all. Others catalyse and direct real mobilisations.”
verb
- To cover with an artificial grasslike material.“But what was there left to Astroturf? The sitting-room? Hugh's bald patch?”
- To fabricate an impression of political support for an agenda.“We have been Astroturfed by some of the biggest players in the business. As you will read in the coming pages, a reasonable-sounding group called Americans for Balanced Energy Choices spent us$40 million during the last presidential[…]”