Reddit's top user leaves platform after harassment

#1

Post by admiralspoo » Thu, May 21, 2020, 2:01 PM UTC

Reddit's top user leaves platform after harassment
dailydot.com

Re: Reddit's top user leaves platform after harassment

#2

Post by Eagleflight » Thu, May 21, 2020, 2:09 PM UTC

I was outraged when I first saw that list and how a few mods control everything, but this totally sheds some new light on the situation. The internet can be really shitty sometimes.

Re: Reddit's top user leaves platform after harassment

#3

Post by chomp » Thu, May 21, 2020, 2:18 PM UTC

Vaguely reminiscent of MrBabyMan and Digg.

Re: Reddit's top user leaves platform after harassment

#4

Post by eganist » Thu, May 21, 2020, 2:21 PM UTC

Relationship Advice lead-ish mod here. We were one of the subs "called out" as being controlled by Gallowboob with the original post and subsequent reposts.

We (buu700 and I) added Gallowboob some years back largely to have insight into how other teams modded their subs at a time when we were growing quickly and needed to know what to do to keep up. While useful in meeting that goal, we quickly realized it was pretty meaningless for /r/relationship_advice because of the nature of the questions we were getting. The only sub like ours is /r/relationships, and we each differentiated from each other by having different rules and content creation controls.

As best as we know, Gallowboob enjoys the place and is pretty decent at modding, so we're pretty happy to have him. Most mods burn out quickly because of how dark the questions get as well as because of how meaninglessly violent people become when their posts are modded.

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Separate comment on an item in the story:

> Allam believes his time on the site has made him a more “paranoid” person and led him to develop “borderline PTSD.”

Moderating Reddit's larger subreddits is absolutely capable of resulting in PTSD-like symptoms. I've been dealing with some on and off after a post some years ago where somebody who requested advice followed through with the best course of action only to find that his wife killed their kids soon after. And Reddit has absolutely no support system for things like this.

Re: Reddit's top user leaves platform after harassment

#5

Post by thebouv » Thu, May 21, 2020, 2:23 PM UTC

So, I don't get it.

Why does it matter if a few volunteer mods manage a ton of subs?

Isn't it hard to do? So they have a hard job? And it's volunteer?

And .. what? I don't understand the outrage directed at mods I guess.

Note: I'm a light Reddit user. I follow a handful of subs. And I can't name a single mod of any of them. Maybe this is more meaningful for people who spend more time on the site and are more involved in their particular subs? What, they just bash heads with mods sometimes?

Re: Reddit's top user leaves platform after harassment

#6

Post by BitwiseFool » Thu, May 21, 2020, 2:26 PM UTC

I downloaded Reddit Enhancement Suite and it has a feature that marks the cumulative amount of upvotes you've given a user when you see a post of theirs. It is absolutely eye-opening just how much content is posted by the same few dozens of usernames. GallowBoob is the most infamous but to focus on him would be a mistake. It's pretty clear to me that the vast majority of content on Reddit is heavily manipulated and artificial.

Re: Reddit's top user leaves platform after harassment

#7

Post by ideals » Thu, May 21, 2020, 2:27 PM UTC

The user in question is GallowBoob.

Re: Reddit's top user leaves platform after harassment

#8

Post by dvtrn » Thu, May 21, 2020, 2:27 PM UTC

eganist wrote: post #4

Relationship Advice lead-ish mod here. We were one of the subs "called out" as being controlled by Gallowboob with the original post and subsequent reposts. We (buu700 and I) added Gallowboob some years back largely to have insight into how other teams modded their subs at a time when we were growing quickly and needed to know what to do to keep up. While useful in meeting that goal, we quickly realized it was pretty…

And Reddit has absolutely no support system for things like this.

My immediate thinking involves referring affected parties to professionals and specialists who deal with this sort of thing, but in your opinion-what should Reddit (the company) be doing?

Re: Reddit's top user leaves platform after harassment

#9

Post by hi41 » Thu, May 21, 2020, 2:28 PM UTC

Can someone please explain how doxing works at a technical level? Suppose I post something on Twitter or Youtube that someone does not like how would they dox me? For example, CNN outed a guy who did a video where Trump bashes a guy superimposed with CNN in a boxing ring. Wouldn't such attempts at doxing people also put pressure on their freedom of speech and expression?

Re: Reddit's top user leaves platform after harassment

#10

Post by buboard » Thu, May 21, 2020, 2:29 PM UTC

thebouv wrote: post #5

So, I don't get it. Why does it matter if a few volunteer mods manage a ton of subs? Isn't it hard to do? So they have a hard job? And it's volunteer? And .. what? I don't understand the outrage directed at mods I guess. Note: I'm a light Reddit user. I follow a handful of subs. And I can't name a single mod of any of them. Maybe this is more meaningful for people who spend more time on the site and are more involved…

I assume it has been going on for too long, so their age matters. They apply the norms of a previous generation, while reddit's audience is consistently young. It was probably never a concern when reddit started, but things like mod-ship should have expiration dates.