This is pure tin-hat thinking. Given the number of Apple fan boys out there, and how friendly the media as a whole is to their cause, do you really think they

This is pure tin-hat thinking. Given the number of Apple fan boys out there, and how friendly the media as a whole is to their cause, do you really think they would view the potential benefits of astroturfing as greater than the potential damage it would do to their brand? It's not a matter of good or evil. It's a matter of smart vs. dumb.