[simonh]

The 50. Ent strategy has evolved though. It’s named that way because originally government porpaganda farms paid 50 cents per post, but the Chinese government isn’t a bunch of idiots. They have adapted and evolved their astroturfing strategies. There almost certainly are simple 50 cent style post farms operating, but they are also operating taste-maker and influencer programmes as well. It’s a spectrum from the original 50 cent guys at one end, right up to the presenters on state television talk shows at the other. The 50 cent moniker is used just for convenience.