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Coffeeshop Chit Chat - PM Lee warn of “astroturfing” on the Net</TD><TD id=msgunetc noWrap align=right> </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE class=msgtable cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="96%"><TBODY><TR><TD class=msg vAlign=top><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR class=msghead><TD class=msgbfr1 width="1%"> </TD><TD><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0><TBODY><TR class=msghead vAlign=top><TD class=msgF width="1%" noWrap align=right>From: </TD><TD class=msgFname width="68%" noWrap>kojakbt_89 <NOBR></NOBR> </TD><TD class=msgDate width="30%" noWrap align=right>8:46 am </TD></TR><TR class=msghead><TD class=msgT height=20 width="1%" noWrap align=right>To: </TD><TD class=msgTname width="68%" noWrap>ALL <NOBR></NOBR></TD><TD class=msgNum noWrap align=right> (1 of 4) </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgleft rowSpan=4 width="1%"> </TD><TD class=wintiny noWrap align=right>30695.1 </TD></TR><TR><TD height=8></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgtxt>PM Lee warns of “astroturfing” to pressurize the government for personal benefits 1 year after AWARE saga
March 27, 2010 by admin
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http://www.temasekreview.com/2010/03/27/pm-lee-warns-of-astroturfing-to-pressurize-the-government-for-personal-benefits-1-year-after-aware-saga/
Written by Our Correspondent
Almost a year after the AWARE saga which rocked the entire nation, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong finally realized that his administration was “duped” by “astroturfers” into making hasty decisions about the sexual education programme conducted by AWARE.
“Astroturfing” refers to the creation of a fake grassroots or “people power” movement. The term for fake “grassroots” organising originates from a product called Astroturf, which is a plastic fake grass carpet-like product commonly used in baseball and football.
In the aftermath of the divisive AWARE EGM on 2 May 2009, an online petition started by a C F Khoo garnered over 7,000 signatures in less than a week, forcing MOE to suspend Aware’s Comprehensive Sex Education (CSE) indefinitely.
Speaking at a REACH forum yesterday, PM Lee said he received many emails from opposing camps during the AWARE saga which were identical and obviously cut and pasted from a template.
He added that “the government cannot make decisions simply based on the volume of emails supporting or opposing a particular situation” and must also be cautious of such “Astroturfing” campaigns.
PM Lee used another example to illustrate his point that not all online feedback are “authentic” – the names and phone numbers attached to recent emails criticizing the government on property prices all turned out to be fake.
The latest attempt by PM Lee to cast aspersions on the credibility of the New Media comes in a time when there is a rising number of online petitions and Facebook groups set up by Singaporeans to express their unhappiness over some government policies.
For example, an online petition was started two weeks ago by a Singaporean Gilbert Goh calling on Singapore employers to hire Singaporeans first.
This was followed a week later by a Facebook group comprising of “virgin” Singapore voters who are clamoring to vote in the next general election.
Some opposition politicians have also made use of online campaigns to advocate their political convictions. Singapore People Party’s member Alex Tan started a Facebook group to vote out the PAP which has garnered more than 4,200 members so far. Kenneth Jeyaretnam, Secretary-General of the Reform Party jumped in the fray too by setting up a Facebook group to call on the PAP to abolish GRCs.
With the rise of the New Media as a popular medium of communication among young Singaporeans, the PAP has been trying desperately hard to dismiss online views as not being “representative” of the majority of Singaporeans.
Why should PM Lee care about the “authenticity” of the feedback he received anyway? After all, as his favorite minister Lim Swee Say put it bluntly in Parliament a month ago:
“We (PAP) are DEAF to all criticisms.”
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March 27, 2010 by admin
Filed under Headlines
Leave a comment
http://www.temasekreview.com/2010/03/27/pm-lee-warns-of-astroturfing-to-pressurize-the-government-for-personal-benefits-1-year-after-aware-saga/
Written by Our Correspondent
Almost a year after the AWARE saga which rocked the entire nation, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong finally realized that his administration was “duped” by “astroturfers” into making hasty decisions about the sexual education programme conducted by AWARE.
“Astroturfing” refers to the creation of a fake grassroots or “people power” movement. The term for fake “grassroots” organising originates from a product called Astroturf, which is a plastic fake grass carpet-like product commonly used in baseball and football.
In the aftermath of the divisive AWARE EGM on 2 May 2009, an online petition started by a C F Khoo garnered over 7,000 signatures in less than a week, forcing MOE to suspend Aware’s Comprehensive Sex Education (CSE) indefinitely.
Speaking at a REACH forum yesterday, PM Lee said he received many emails from opposing camps during the AWARE saga which were identical and obviously cut and pasted from a template.
He added that “the government cannot make decisions simply based on the volume of emails supporting or opposing a particular situation” and must also be cautious of such “Astroturfing” campaigns.
PM Lee used another example to illustrate his point that not all online feedback are “authentic” – the names and phone numbers attached to recent emails criticizing the government on property prices all turned out to be fake.
The latest attempt by PM Lee to cast aspersions on the credibility of the New Media comes in a time when there is a rising number of online petitions and Facebook groups set up by Singaporeans to express their unhappiness over some government policies.
For example, an online petition was started two weeks ago by a Singaporean Gilbert Goh calling on Singapore employers to hire Singaporeans first.
This was followed a week later by a Facebook group comprising of “virgin” Singapore voters who are clamoring to vote in the next general election.
Some opposition politicians have also made use of online campaigns to advocate their political convictions. Singapore People Party’s member Alex Tan started a Facebook group to vote out the PAP which has garnered more than 4,200 members so far. Kenneth Jeyaretnam, Secretary-General of the Reform Party jumped in the fray too by setting up a Facebook group to call on the PAP to abolish GRCs.
With the rise of the New Media as a popular medium of communication among young Singaporeans, the PAP has been trying desperately hard to dismiss online views as not being “representative” of the majority of Singaporeans.
Why should PM Lee care about the “authenticity” of the feedback he received anyway? After all, as his favorite minister Lim Swee Say put it bluntly in Parliament a month ago:
“We (PAP) are DEAF to all criticisms.”
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