Reddit Goes Dark
Some of Reddit's most popular communities have gone dark in protest against pricing changes.
Pages dedicated to specific fandoms, including Harry Potter and Taylor Swift, have also decided to go offline.
Reddit heavily relies on community moderation, with tens of thousands of unpaid moderators, or "mods," ensuring the functionality of the website. However, Reddit does not charge hosting fees for individuals who want to create their own communities based on specific interests.
The blackout involved over 7,000 subreddits, including some of the most popular ones such as r/gaming, r/aww, r/Music, r/todayilearned, and r/pics. A subreddit is the name given to a forum within the Reddit platform - effectively a community of people who gather to discuss a particular interest.
The goal of the protest was to demonstrate the collective power of the moderators and highlight their importance to the site's operations.
Reddit's CEO, Steve Huffman, acknowledged the blackout and stated that Reddit needs to be a self-sustaining business. He affirmed that explicit content would remain on the site but announced restrictions on how it can be accessed through third-party apps.
In a post to the website on Friday, Reddit chief executive Steve Huffman said it "needs to be a self-sustaining business" and addressed the blackout.
"We respect when you and your communities take action to highlight the things you need, including, at times, going private," he said.
"We are all responsible for ensuring Reddit provides an open accessible place for people to find community and belonging."
He also confirmed that explicit content would remain on the site, but Reddit would limit how it can be accessed from third-party apps.
The protest aimed to send a message to Reddit admins, emphasizing the reliance on moderators and expressing opposition to the changes. Some subreddits indicated that they might continue the blackout or restrict their communities further until Reddit reverses its policies.
The charges imposed by Reddit on third-party app developers have been criticized as excessive, leading some developers to shut down their apps. However, Reddit defended the charges, stating that they are based on usage levels and are necessary to support third-party apps and cover hosting costs.
Third-party apps such as Apollo, Reddit is Fun, Sync and ReddPlanet were set up as a way for people to access the platform on their mobile devices before Reddit came up with an app, until then Reddit was a web-only Social Network.
All four of these apps have said they will be shutting down as a result of Reddit's new API pricing. The situation is evolving, and the duration and impact of the blackout may vary across different subreddits. It's advisable to refer to the latest updates from Reddit and the specific communities involved for the most accurate and up-to-date information.
Mili Ponce
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Reddit Goes Dark
Reviewed by Mili Ponce
on
Monday, June 12, 2023
Rating: