Astroturfing: Milbloggers v. Fenton Communication

"In an online fight between a few thousand military bloggers and fifty communications professionals, who will win?
If Fenton Communication has their way, PR will come out on top.

The latest dust-up is over a a group that hired Fenton to do their public relations work called Appreal for Redress — an organization that milbloggers are suggesting is nothing more than a manufactured front group for anti-war zealots (underwritten by groups such as the Fourth Freedom Forum).

The concept for the site is that there is a number of troops who believe that we should not be in Iraq. Supposedly, this grassroots collection of troops has organized in support of the following statement:

As a patriotic American proud to serve the nation in uniform, I respectfully urge my political leaders in Congress to support the prompt withdrawal of all American military forces and bases from Iraq . Staying in Iraq will not work and is not worth the price. It is time for U.S. troops to come home.

Milbloggers say that this PR campaign is astroturfing (using false and artificial means to create the appearance of grassroots support without a sincere community uprising)."
The D-Ring