Thanks for those examples. Sorry for the delay in posting it and responding. For some reason, Akismet and Spam Karma are tagging all “Typepad” URLs as spam. I don’t understand it.

But, your point is well made. I think it is astroturfing, too. We can all try to put lipstick on the farm animal, but it is still a pig or a cow.

Forgive me for the ageist remark, but the fellow I write about above is someone that could be termed “old school” when it comes to PR practice. I don’t mean that to be a universal characterization of older practitioners, but I think that (in some instances) the old rules are a part of the problem.

Thanks for the comment. I’ll try to fix the Akismet/Karma plugins, if I can.

Your point about word of mouth is spot on. And, I love grassroots campaigns. They are the lifeblood of so many nonprofits.

We just need to make sure we follow the rules. The guy I wrote about up there has his rules. Responsible practitioners, like you, have theirs. It will work out over time, I hope. But, it will take time, and sometimes be quite ugly and messy.

Take care, Lindsey. Always great to hear from you.

This is a great point and definitely a good topic to teach the students. It is sometimes hard to deferentiate between what is really grassroots and what is not. I think it would be good policy for these people attempting grassroots to make the safe choice and tell the public everything. It is not worth trying these simple methods and having them back fire in a big way.

I think grassroots is a great way to get things to an audience, but let’s remember what happens either way – When someone is happy with a product or service they tell a few people, when someone has had a bad experience they tell everyone they know!

I had a great time in your class Robert and I wish I was back at Auburn!

Here are a few articles on the issues that might interest your students:
Where’s the Fire? Commercial Alert Sees Smoke Where None Exists
http://pr.typepad.com/pr_communications/2006/12/wheres_the_fire.html
Microsoft Vista Blogger Relations Program
http://pr.typepad.com/pr_communications/2007/01/microsoft_vista.html

Suffice to say, the poster is quite adamant that this is not, in any way, a campaign that violates any regulations. I’d post their response here, but it is quite long.

It seems that these types of campaigns are, at some point, going to have to be either (a) reviewed by a gov’t regulatory group or (b) be adjudicated individually before there is an accepted resolution. These online activities are relatively new, despite the example above taking place 11 years ago.

I’m guessing we’ll see many more mistakes, or perceived mis-steps, along the way. But, your point as to education of those participating in the campaigns is the key point.

Edelman, for instance, began education sessions for their employees worldwide after their incident. So, I’d say that Pierce Mattie and Edelman are the firms leading the way in how to do this type of activity and get it right down the road. I wonder if other firms are engaging in education of their employees, too?