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Forging A Return to Productive Conversation: An Open Letter to Reddit
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](https
://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/06/16/reddit-ceo-blackout-
moderators-steve-huffman/). 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](https://www.reddit.com/r/Blind/comments/14ds81l/
rblinds_meetings_with_reddit_and_the_current/) (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](https://i.imgur.com/xLmTxcR.jpg).
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