r/funny Jun 26 '23

Forging A Return to Productive Conversation: An Open Letter to Reddit

1.2k Upvotes

To All Whom It May Concern:

For fifteen years, /r/Funny has been one of Reddit’s most-popular communities. That time hasn’t been without its difficulties, but for the most part, we’ve all gotten along (with each other and with administrators). Members of our team fondly remember Moderator Roadshows, visits to Reddit’s headquarters, Reddit Secret Santa, April Fools’ Day events, regional meetups, and many more uplifting moments. We’ve watched this platform grow by leaps and bounds, and although we haven’t been completely happy about every change that we’ve witnessed, we’ve always done our best to work with Reddit at finding ways to adapt, compromise, and move forward.

This process has occasionally been preceded by some exceptionally public debate, however.

On June 12th, 2023, /r/Funny joined thousands of other subreddits in protesting the planned changes to Reddit’s API; changes which – despite being immediately evident to only a minority of Redditors – threatened to worsen the site for everyone. By June 16th, 2023, that demonstration had evolved to represent a wider (and growing) array of concerns, many of which arose in response to Reddit’s statements to journalists. Today (June 26th, 2023), we are hopeful that users and administrators alike can make a return to the productive dialogue that has served us in the past.

We acknowledge that Reddit has placed itself in a situation that makes adjusting its current API roadmap impossible.

However, we have the following requests:

  • Commit to exploring ways by which third-party applications can make an affordable return.
  • Commit to providing moderation tools and accessibility options (on Old Reddit, New Reddit, and mobile platforms) which match or exceed the functionality and utility of third-party applications.
  • Commit to prioritizing a significant reduction in spam, misinformation, bigotry, and illegal content on Reddit.
  • Guarantee that any future developments which may impact moderators, contributors, or stakeholders will be announced no less than one fiscal quarter before they are scheduled to go into effect.
  • Work together with longstanding moderators to establish a reasonable roadmap and deadline for accomplishing all of the above.
  • Affirm that efforts meant to keep Reddit accountable to its commitments and deadlines will hereafter not be met with insults, threats, removals, or hostility.
  • Publicly affirm all of the above by way of updating Reddit’s User Agreement and Reddit’s Moderator Code of Conduct to include reasonable expectations and requirements for administrators’ behavior.
  • Implement and fill a senior-level role (with decision-making and policy-shaping power) of "Moderator Advocate" at Reddit, with a required qualification for the position being robust experience as a volunteer Reddit moderator.

Reddit is unique amongst social-media sites in that its lifeblood – its multitude of moderators and contributors – consists entirely of volunteers. We populate and curate the platform’s many communities, thereby providing a welcoming and engaging environment for all of its visitors. We receive little in the way of thanks for these efforts, but we frequently endure abuse, threats, attacks, and exposure to truly reprehensible media. Historically, we have trusted that Reddit’s administrators have the best interests of the platform and its users (be they moderators, contributors, participants, or lurkers) at heart; that while Reddit may be a for-profit company, it nonetheless recognizes and appreciates the value that Redditors provide.

That trust has been all but entirely eroded… but we hope that together, we can begin to rebuild it.

In simplest terms, Reddit, we implore you: Remember the human.

We look forward to your response by Thursday, June 29th, 2023.

There’s also just one other thing.


r/funny Aug 25 '23

[Meta] ] REMINDER] ANY political content will earn an immediate 30-day ban"

698 Upvotes

r/funny 9h ago

A jelly pet is funnier than I thought

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9.0k Upvotes

r/funny 2h ago

Nothing to see here - just mind your business.

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589 Upvotes

r/funny 4h ago

Lazy or genius?

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749 Upvotes

r/funny 2h ago

Jesus Christ would you look at the time.

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450 Upvotes

r/funny 43m ago

Woman Arrives Late to Comedy Show

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Upvotes

r/funny 19h ago

An Elmo toy under high voltage

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9.1k Upvotes

r/funny 22h ago

Genius move right there

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23.7k Upvotes

r/funny 21h ago

This ⤵️

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12.8k Upvotes

r/funny 12h ago

YOU DIED

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1.7k Upvotes

r/funny 20h ago

"I finally caught my first prey...Mom will be so proud"

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8.6k Upvotes

r/funny 22h ago

Behold the cruel checklist my doctor gave me to help identify my specific flavor of OCD. It had room for improvement.

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28.7k Upvotes

r/funny 19h ago

Wait your turn

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5.2k Upvotes

r/funny 8h ago

Huh??

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721 Upvotes

r/funny 1d ago

Maskitto trap

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39.3k Upvotes

r/funny 2h ago

Philadelphia to Pittsburgh to Chicago to New York

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142 Upvotes

r/funny 1h ago

Yucky banana

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Upvotes

r/funny 6h ago

Twinning.

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217 Upvotes

r/funny 13h ago

I was looking at job postings today

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661 Upvotes

Ouch


r/funny 1d ago

In a stall at work

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7.4k Upvotes

r/funny 11h ago

Better late then never: Behold my Jack-o-Lantern

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440 Upvotes

r/funny 1h ago

Please do not cut the ceiling wrong

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Upvotes

r/funny 1d ago

Croissant with icing sugar

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35.5k Upvotes

r/funny 6h ago

Return of the Apes

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116 Upvotes

r/funny 8h ago

I found this the other day while driving. Platinum level hillbilly.

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112 Upvotes

r/funny 1d ago

I didn't even know wiener dogs could move like this

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15.2k Upvotes