His show was an exhibition of positive philosophy. Calling it a Christian show is pushing a misleading narrative.
Also, Christianity is not just the positive parts. Selectively emphasizing only those parts means leaving out much of what makes up Christianity, now and throughout history.
It doesn't have to be astroturfing. Repeatedly exposing HN readers to the same news would be a good way to gradually increase positive opinion until a desirable threshold is reached ("the first positive top comment").
If your demos required storing or using someone else's personal information, taking them down was the right thing to do (assuming you weren't going to put effort in to become compliant). If they didn't, you panicked and took down potentially valuable data of your own volition.
Also, Christianity is not just the positive parts. Selectively emphasizing only those parts means leaving out much of what makes up Christianity, now and throughout history.