The attack on Target was an astroturfing campaign not a boycott
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Hey team,

For weeks, Target has been at the center of a transphobic frenzy whipped
up by the disinformation sphere. The crime? Selling Pride merch. Or in
the words of the alt-right, "grooming" and "indoctrinating" children
into the "LGBT ideology."

This is so over the top and ridiculous that Target executives should
have laughed in their faces. Instead, Target pulled some of the Pride
merch

**off** its shelves in response to growing safety concerns for their
employees.

"Given these volatile circumstances, we are making adjustments to our
plans, including removing items that have been at the center of the most
significant confrontational behavior," Target said in a statement
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to the press.

But who created these "volatile circumstances"? A handful of
disinformation outlets.

**The attack on Target was an astroturfing campaign**
Let's get this straight: Target was not at the center of a "national
boycott" or a "customer backlash," as you may have heard.

What really happened is a handful of hate groups and outlets worked
together to force one of the most LGBTQ+-friendly companies in America
to pull its Pride items ahead of Pride Month under the threat of
violence. That threat of violence was manufactured by none other than
the hate groups and disinformation outlets themselves.

 

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How disinfo outlets created a fake boycott against Target.

In fact, the whole thing was homegrown using a three-step astroturfing
campaign:

1.

**Manufacture their own backlash.** For example, Daily Wire employee
Candace Owens fanned her own flames: "Do not shop at Target or else
you're gay and you're a pervert," she said. Another Daily Wire host Matt
Walsh chimed in on Twitter
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"If they decide to shove this garbage in our face, they should know that
they'll pay a price. It won't be worth whatever they think they'll
gain. First Bud Light and now Target. Our campaign is making progress.
Let's keep it going."

2.

**Cover the backlash as a news story.** Daily Wire started covering the
outrage drummed up by their own team as if it were a news story. "The
Tide Is Turning: Prominent Christians Talk Effective Target And Bud
Light Boycotts," reads one headline. "Fans Urge Chip And Joanna Gaines
To Cut Ties With Target Amid Pride Collection Backlash," reads another.

3.

**Create a network effect.** The Federalist, Breitbart, Daily Mail, and
dozens of other disinformation outlets pumped out hundreds of fake news
stories about Target to amplify their own homegrown "boycott."

When Target announced they would pull their Pride merch, it was under
the threat of violence and vandalism fueled by this network's lies and
hateful rhetoric. In fact, people were filming themselves vandalizing
Pride Month displays at Target and harassing Target employees, with no
end in sight.

This was simply no ordinary boycott.

**The business model: threatening "woke" brands with violence**
As Pride Month begins, we're urging advertisers to take a moment to
understand and learn to recognize how these outlets operate.

Their "win" with Target has emboldened them, and they've already moved
on to harassing The North Face
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Kohl's
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and even the notoriously homophobic Chick-Fil-A
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(Did you know Chick-Fil-A has a DEI department?)

It's all part of a "culture war" and a "backlash" that they've
invented for themselves to earn ad revenues. After all, every pageview
equals money.

However, it's not clear that the executives of these companies
understand that they're being duped. And that's why as these
campaigns pick up speed, our call to action this Pride Month is to be
LOUD and PROUD. Double down on your support of the LGBTQ+ community by
letting the companies in the line of attack know that you support Pride
Month.

They need to hear from you.

Hugs,

Claire and Nandini

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