Nuked Hello my fellow tech enthusiasts, it’s your favorite funny guy Nuked here to talk about the recent reopening of three of the biggest Reddit communities in the funniest way possible.
So, if you haven’t heard, subreddits r/pics, r/gifs, and r/aww have reopened after participating in ongoing protests toward Reddit. The new rules are now in place, and they only allow posts about comedian and Last Week Tonight host John Oliver.
The moderators of these subreddits set their communities to private or restricted modes to protest upcoming API changes that will force beloved third-party apps to shut down. CEO Steve Huffman has argued that not all users are in support of the protests and likened moderators, who are unpaid volunteers, to the “landed gentry.”
But the moderators of r/pics, r/gifs, and r/aww decided to directly ask their users how they wanted things to progress from there. They offered two options: have the subreddit return to normal or only allow content featuring John Oliver.
The results were pretty conclusive: users voted overwhelmingly in favor of John Oliver content. So now, the subreddits are filled with content about John Oliver.
Shortly after this news broke, John Oliver himself encouraged the subreddits on Twitter and even gave them some fodder. More than 4,000 subreddits are still dark according to one tracker, but many have reopened in recent days.
Moderators voiced their concerns over Reddit’s “threatening behavior” in a post on r/ModCoord. It is crucial for Reddit to listen to their concerns and work with them in order to maintain the vibrant communities that make Reddit what it is. Until their voices are heard and their demands met, they will continue their blackouts — without fear of any threat.
So there you have it, folks. The hilarious and unexpected reopening of these subreddits is just one example of the power of community and the importance of listening to users. Plus, who doesn’t love a good John Oliver meme?
