Reddit, which draws more than 1 billion unique visitors per month, relies on unpaid volunteers to run smaller platforms known as subreddits.
But the moderators aren’t happy. Mods of more than 9,000 subreddits joined a protest over a new pricing policy set by Reddit. The protest was to last 48 hours, but many moderators have kept it up.
Now, top officials at Reddit are firing back, removing moderator teams managing subreddits that switched the labeling on their communities to Not Safe For Work (NSFW), on which ads are prohibited.
The ramped-up protest led to lots of nudity on otherwise mild subreddits, including r/pokemongo and r/Formula1. So Reddit 86ed the entire moderator team for one subreddit, r/mildlyinteresting, which boasts 11 million members, but later reinstated them, The Verge reported.
“Moderators incorrectly marking a community as NSFW is a violation of both our Content Policy and Moderator Code of Conduct,” Reddit spokesman Tim Rathschmidt told The Verge.
Reddit also told PCMag: “It’s not OK to show people NSFW content when they don’t want to see it. In line with our Moderator Code of Conduct … we’ll remove moderators and restrict communities where moderators are engaging in malicious conduct, like allowing rule-violating behavior or encouraging the submission of sexually-explicit content in previously safe-for-work spaces.”
Moderators who run the subreddits object to a change to the platform’s application programming interface (API), which allows third-party apps like the popular Apollo to display content. The third-party apps are far superior to the official app and offer up content with ads.
Apollo’s developer, Christian Selig, has estimated it would cost $20 million a year to adhere to the new API policy to keep the app running, one website reported. He said his app will have to shut down, and others, like Reddit is Fun and ReddPlanet, say they will be forced to follow suit.
Moderators have posted what they say is a note from Reddit management that they received after they took their communities private.
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“Hi everyone, we are aware that you have chosen to close your community at this time. Mods have a right to take a break from moderating or decide that you don’t want to be a mod anymore. But active communities are relied upon by thousands or even millions of users, and we have a duty to keep these spaces active,” the note says.
“Subreddits belong to the community of users who come to them for support and conversation. Moderators are stewards of these spaces and in a position of trust. Redditors rely on these spaces for information support entertainment and connection,” says the note, signed uModCodeofConduct, a Reddit administration account.
“Our goal here is to ensure that existing mod teams establish a path forward to make sure your subreddit is available for the community that has made its home here. If you are willing to reopen and maintain the community, please take steps to begin that process. Many communities have chosen to go restricted for a period of time before becoming fully open to avoid a flood of traffic. If this community remains private, we will reach out soon with information on what next steps will take place,” the note says.
So the battle goes on. One moderator of the subreddit r/Formula1 announced he’s leaving — and made clear why. “PS: Yes, I am leaving because of the admin handling of the API changes, the tone [ co-founder and CEO Steve] Huffman elected to use in every single interview, and because of the whole approach of u/ModCodeOfConduct.”
More are likely to follow. And for a site that relies on volunteers to spend countless hours moderating their subreddits — all to make Reddit money — that’s not good.
The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.
Joseph Curl has covered politics for 35 years, including 12 years as White House correspondent for a national newspaper. He was also the a.m. editor of the Drudge Report for four years. Send tips to [email protected] and follow him on Twitter @josephcurl.