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> It would be a good idea to present stronger evidence before saying HN is astroturfable. What? You do realize anyone can create HN accounts to post any link a
by barumi 6y ago
> It would be a good idea to present stronger evidence before saying HN is astroturfable.
What? You do realize anyone can create HN accounts to post any link and comment on any discussion, right?
Even if you argue that there are magical ex post facto measures to tackle obvious and rampant abuse, you do understand that the system is indeed vulnerable to astroturfers right in its very design, don't you?
- oefrha 6y agoAnyone can create HN accounts to post any link and comment on any discussion, but certain accounts are dead on arrival, and votes from certain accounts don’t count, so you can pollute /new or discussions (especially for users with showdead on), but that doesn’t mean your content automatically get prime spot placement just by registering more accounts. Meanwhile, clickbaiting is much more effective than creating accounts.
- barumi 6y ago> but that doesn’t mean your content automatically get prime spot placement That's not how it works. It might be a desirable goal, but that doesn't mean that the role of a content marketer is not to a) astroturf discusssions, b) generate content that's SEO-friendly even if they don't blow up. Customers already get their money's worth if you get your minions sparking causal low-key discussions about their product/service/PR talking point on random places in order to raise awareness and focus on topics in ways that serves your best interests.