What don't they have in common?

View full size photo »

Middle Easy has a very interesting post fueled by the records made public as part of the Viacom-YouTube lawsuit.  The records include emails between Spike TV executives and Dana White.  As part of a viral marketing scheme, White approved the "leaking" of a Ultimate Fighter "outtake" that "fans" would then hype incessantly on non-UFC/Spike message boards:

This is the type of manipulation that would make Vince McMahon proud, though generally speaking, astroturfing is unpredictable and can blow up in a company's face.  Possibly the most infamous example is Sony's "All I Want For Christmas Is A PSP" blog, which is archived here.  Featuring a rap video by the blogger's douchey "cousin," it was quickly found out as the work of a marketing company that didn't spring for a private domain name registrations.  Oops!