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Reddit is a social news site started by Steve Huffman and Alexis Ohanian in 2005. The company was one of the first companies to Y Combinator’s business accelerator.

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6 Oct, 2015

Upvoted

Product Release0 Comments

Reddit launches Upvoted (link), a standalone news site, to surface interesting news from Reddit itself. Unlike Reddit, the site will have no comments, and despite the name, no voting. A team of around ten will find stories on Reddit, verify the details, interview the original posters, and then write articles for Upvoted. At launch, the site will share around 10 to 20 stories a day, rising to 40.

Everything will have a direct tie back to Reddit. I want to find the tiny thread that connects it back to Reddit…The stuff our community creates on a daily basis blows our mind. Unfortunately, rather than telling that story, some news outlets take our users’ content and repackage it as their own. They don’t tell the backstory of our communities. We think our users’ stories need to be told, but with them at the center of it.

20 Aug, 2015

Reddit AMA

Interview0 Comments

McAfee conducts a Reddit AMA, where he talks about society:

Here’s what I’ve learned. People will be people, you can trust no one. It’s not a bad thing/cynical. I trust people to be people, to act in their own self-interests. If you understand that, you can use that! People will be disloyal, I’ve heard there are wives that sleep around, etc. We are disloyal, but loving, kind, gracious. We are a contradiction, the negatives are not bad if you see them for what they are. You cannot trust people, big deal, you CAN trust them to be self-interested, and I use that all the f-cking time.

About Belize:

The most beautiful in the world. It has a barrier reef, 2nd in the world. I had 5 boats on the beach on the ocean, you try that anywhere else. It has jungles and ruins that haven’t even been explored. The problem is that it has people there, people descended from pirates. There is nothing illegal that the government there is not into. The government is smart if you just go there as an American you will not be bothered. I lived in the jungles where I was the only white person, and they were on to me. They asked me for $2M, weeks later 40+ armed men stormed my house, shot my favorite dog, and held me in the sun with my hands tied. The next day the congressman came and apologized asked for the $2M again. I should have done that rather than tell him to get the f-ck off my property.

And life:

Money corrupts. Once you have enough money, you have no friends, none, even the most dedicated friend you had cannot stop thinking about his mortgage, or new car, or new wife, and friendship ends. Second, your life becomes a nightmare. I was getting 1000/day asking for help, or asking for me to invest (the best was rocket-power roller skates, I almost invested). Money now has become information, how does Google live? They gather information on smartphones and their services. This is far worse than paper. Paper doesn’t try to get into your head, to find out who you’re f-cking, etc. We are all jealous, hopeful and ambitious, and as long as that exists we’ll all have chaos.

6 Aug, 2015

Bans subbreddits

Makes Statement9 Comments

Reddit community ban messageReddit bans several offensive communities that focus on racist content, such as Coontown, WatchNiggersDie and CoonTownMeta. Subreddits that feature animated” child pornography are also banned. The company also introduces an updated Content Policy that prohibits any posts that are illegal, incites violence, harasses or threatens users or includes sexually explicit content taken without the person’s permission. Offensive communities that don’t necessarily break these rules but are nonetheless considered profane or “upsetting” may now be “quarantined,” meaning users have to opt in to see the content. Some may also have NSFW tag. CEO Huffman’s official statement:

Our most important policy over the last ten years has been to allow just about anything so long as it does not prevent others from enjoying Reddit for what it is: the best place online to have truly authentic conversations. I believe these policies strike the right balance.

Huffman’s later comment:

We didn’t ban them because we disagree with them. We banned them because this exist solely to annoy other redditors, prevent us from improving Reddit, and generally make Reddit worse for everyone else.

16 Jul, 2015

‘The trolls are winning the battle’

Writes Article0 Comments

In an article for The Washington Post, Pao says trolls are winning the “battle for the internet”. She says that, while at Reddit, she and several colleagues, were targeted with harassing messages, attempts to post her private information online and death threats.

I have just endured one of the largest trolling attacks in history. And I have just been blessed with the most astonishing human responses to that attack…Balancing free expression with privacy and the protection of participants has always been a challenge for open-content platforms on the Internet. But that balancing act is getting harder. The trolls are winning.

The foundations of the Internet were laid on free expression, but the founders just did not understand how effective their creation would be for the coordination and amplification of harassing behavior. Or that the users who were the biggest bullies would be rewarded with attention for their behavior. Or that young people would come to see this bullying as the norm — as something to emulate in an effort to one-up each other…

No one has figured out the best place to draw the line between bad and ugly — or whether that line can support a viable business model. So it’s left to all of us to figure it out, to call out abuse when we see it. As the trolls on Reddit grew louder and more harassing in recent weeks, another group of users became more vocal. First a few sent positive messages. Then a few more. Soon, I was receiving hundreds of messages a day, and at one point thousands. These messages were thoughtful, well-written and heartfelt…As the threats became really violent, people ended their messages with “stay safe.” Eventually, users started responding on Reddit itself, using accurate information and supportive messages to fight back against the trolls. In the battle for the Internet, the power of humanity to overcome hate gives me hope. I’m rooting for the humans over the trolls. I know we can win.

13 Jul, 2015

Quits, says Pao faced ‘glass cliff’

Quits Job0 Comments

Blount quits after less than two months on the job as Reddit Chief Engineer, having come there from Facebook. She said her move is not directly linked to Pao’s exit, but noted that she had lost confidence in the new direction of the company, and that she could not deliver on promises being made to the community.

I feel like there are going be some big bumps on the road ahead for Reddit. Along the way, there are some very aggressive implied promises being made to the community — in comments to mods, quotes from board members — and they’re going to have some pretty big challenges in meeting those implied promises.

Blount says she believes Pao’s exit was an indirect consequence of gender discrimination, and that Pao had been placed on a “glass cliff” — a term used to describe women being set up for failure by being put in leadership roles during crises.

Victoria wasn’t on a glass cliff. But it’s hard for me to see it any other way than Ellen was. [However] I wouldn’t say my decision to leave was directly related to my gender.

11 Jul, 2015

AMA

Interview0 Comments

Huffman participates in a Reddit AMA (link). On bringing back controversial subreddits:

Unlikely. Creating a clear content policy is another of my immediate priorities. We will make it very clear what is and is not acceptable behavior on reddit. This is still a work in progress, but our thinking is along these lines: Nothing illegal. Nothing that undermines the integrity of reddit. Nothing that causes other individuals harm or to fear for their well-being. Banning content will be a last resort…I don’t want to ever ban content. Sometimes, however, I feel we have no choice because we want to protect reddit itself.

On growth:

Of course the board wants to see growth. I want to see growth, too. We’re not going to see much growth without serious product efforts, and we’re not going to get serious product efforts without more resources. Fortunately, I have the ability to get those resources, so that’s what I’ll do.

10 Jul, 2015

Pao resigns, Huffman replaces as CEO

Resignation4 Comments

Pao resigns from Reddit (statement). She will be replaced by Huffman, but will remain as an adviser to Reddit’s board for the remainder of 2015.

It became clear that the board and I had a different view on the ability of Reddit to grow this year. Because of that, it made sense to bring someone in that shared the same view.

I just want to remind everyone that I am just another human; I have a family, and I have feelings. Everyone attacked on reddit is just another person like you and me. When people make something up to attack me or someone else, it spreads, and we eventually will see it. And we will feel bad, not just about what was said. Also because it undercuts the authenticity of reddit and shakes our faith in humanity.

Reddit board member, Altman:

Ellen has done a phenomenal job, especially in the last few months.

8 Jul, 2015

Thanks supporters

Makes Statement0 Comments

In her first statement since she was fired from the site, Taylor thanks her supporters (full text):

I’ve had some time to think about how to respond to the extraordinary kindness and support you’ve shown me. And here it is: I’ll never forget my time at reddit. You allowed me to be a part of some of the greatest conversations of our time, and it was an honor to be your ambassador. I just want to take a moment to say thank you to all of you who have reached out.

Thank you for everything you’ve given me. From your messages to your artwork, I am deeply moved and grateful beyond words, and your encouragement has meant more than you’ll ever know. I’ve been incredibly humbled and honored to serve this community, and I truly believe all voices matter. Your voices matter. You proved that this weekend. And really, this weekend wasn’t about me. It was about you. And if I know one thing about this community, it’s that you’ll continue making your voices heard. And that’s an inspiration.

6 Jul, 2015

Pao apologizes

Apology0 Comments

Pao makes an announcement as to how she plans on fixing her mistakes on Reddit.

We screwed up. Not just on July 2, but also over the past several years. We haven’t communicated well, and we have surprised moderators and the community with big changes. We have apologized and made promises to you, the moderators and the community, over many years, but time and again, we haven’t delivered on them. When you’ve had feedback or requests, we haven’t always been responsive. The mods and the community have lost trust in me and in us, the administrators of reddit.

Today, we acknowledge this long history of mistakes. We are grateful for all you do for reddit, and the buck stops with me …

I know these are just words, and it may be hard for you to believe us. I don’t have all the answers, and it will take time for us to deliver concrete results. I mean it when I say we screwed up, and we want to have a meaningful ongoing discussion. I know we’ve drifted out of touch with the community as we’ve grown and added more people, and we want to connect more. I and the team are committed to talking more often with the community, starting now.

Thank you for listening. Please share feedback here. Our team is ready to respond to comments.

3 Jul, 2015

Former Mod fired, AMA deleted

0 Comments

Screen Shot 2015-07-04 at 1.34.25 PMIn the midst of AMA admin Victoria Taylor’s termination, reddit moderator Dacvak is fired, with Ellen Pao citing his illness as the reason. Dacvak posts an AMA about his time at reddit and his termination, but all his answers are deleted shortly after (archive).

Subreddits go private

0 Comments

In a response to the earlier removal of Taylor, over 2/5s of the default subreddits that comprise the bulk of user page views make themselves private. Several hundred normal subreddits also take themselves down in protest. Some smaller subreddits and Reddit’s competition, Voat, have seen a boost in traffic as a result. A moderator from /r/pics:

Most people are saying that Victoria leaving was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Reddit’s failing at communication with moderators (and users) goes so far back, even to when I wasn’t on this site.

2 Jul, 2015

Will ‘triage’ AMA requests

Makes Statement0 Comments

Ohanian makes an announcement in regards to Taylor’s removal.

We don’t talk about specific employees, but I do want you to know that I’m here to triage AMA requests in the interim. All AMA inquiries go to AMA@reddit.com where we have a team in place…I posted this on [a mod sub] but I’m reposting here:

We get that losing Victoria has a significant impact on the way you manage your community. I’d really like to understand how we can help solve these problems, because I know r/IAMA thrived before her and will thrive after…We’re prepared to help coordinate and schedule AMAs. I’ve got the inbound coming through my inbox right now and many of the people who come on to do AMAs are excited to do them without assistance (most recently, the noteworthy Channing Tatum AMA).

This is met with harsh criticism and has a total comment score of under -2500.

23 Jun, 2015

10th birthday

Makes Statement0 Comments

The site celebrates its 10th birthday in a blog post that contains statistics about the site’s growth over the years.

Wow. Here we are, ten years later.

  • 190,227,552 posts
  • 1,715,454,785 comments
  • 16,063,942,290 upvotes
  • 36,136,190 user accounts

Together we’ve donated over $1.8 million to Extra Life, Haiti, teachers, and Nepal. We donated another $827,659.49—10% of our 2014 ad revenue—to the top 10 charities of your choice. You’ve also donated a huge amount that we can’t begin to track through individual subreddit campaigns and spontaneous events like this.

You guys really are amazing. Thank you for making the last 10 years of Reddit amazing too. Here’s to the next 10 years.

10 Jun, 2015

Deletes subreddits

Makes Statement0 Comments

Pao enrages the users of Reddit by deleting /r/fatpeoplehate, a major subreddit with over one hundred and fifty thousand users, as well as four smaller subreddits.  Pao says the act is to stop harassment:

We want as little involvement as possible in managing these interactions but will be involved when needed to protect privacy and free expression, and to prevent harassment…It is not easy to balance these values, especially as the Internet evolves. We are learning and hopefully improving as we move forward. We want to be open about our involvement: We will ban subreddits that allow their communities to use the subreddit as a platform to harass individuals when moderators don’t take action. We’re banning behavior, not ideas.

Users accuse Pao for censorship, even those that don’t like the subreddit.

3 Jun, 2015

Button reaches 1million presses

Announcement0 Comments

The Button has had one million different people press it in the two month and two days since its origin, which represents a little over one tenth of the total population of all Reddit accounts.

Reddit's "THE BUTTON" hits 1 million

20 May, 2015

Removes wage negotiations

Makes Statement0 Comments

In an attempt to reduce the possibility of a wage gap existing within Reddit, Interim CEO Pao removes the ability of employees to negotiate for their wages at reddit. Instead employees are offered a salary on a take it or leave it basis. This is due to findings that men are better at negotiating their salaries and as such usually end up with a slightly better salary than their female counterparts. Pao urges other companies to do the same, claiming that it is an important step in gender equality.

When somebody comes in we figure out what role they’re applying for, what band they’re in and we give them what we think is a fair salary in that band. It takes a lot of tension out of the process, we’ve had people apply to Reddit just because of that policy.

1 Apr, 2015

The Button

Product Release0 Comments

Reddit adds a countdown button as an April Fool’s joke.

The timer will count down from 60 seconds. If the button is pressed the timer will reset to 60 seconds and continue counting down. Only users logged into accounts created before 2015-04-01 can press the button. You may only press the button once. We can’t tell you what to do from here on out. The choice is yours.

The timer will count down from 60 seconds, but every time someone presses the button before it hits zero, it resets back to 60 and starts the countdown all over again. When the button is pressed, users get a badge, known as “flair,” that they can add to their profile. The flair’s color depends on how long the person waits to press the button. Those who have not pressed the button have gray flair. Those who press from 60-52 seconds get purple flair, and so on, down to red flair for those who wait longest. As of April 16, 751,354 people have pressed the button.

30 Oct, 2014

Reddit $50m Series B funding

Fundraising0 Comments

Altman leads Reddit’s $50 million Series B round with Andreesen Horowitz and Sequoia Capital, as well as individual investors including Leto, Dogg, Kushner, Livingston, Kevin and Julia Hartz, Mariam Naficy, and Reddit CEO Yishan Wong. Valuation is $500 million. Altman:

I’m willing to be very patient. I don’t have any particular timeframe in mind. I believe that the community is very valuable and that the value will continue to increase. Up to the company if they want to share cashflow details, but they run the company efficiently.

16 Oct, 2014

Hires Morrissey

0 Comments

Reddit hires Morrissey after acquiring his Alien Blue app. Reddit:

We are pleased to announce that the most popular iOS client for Reddit, Alien Blue, is now an official Reddit app. We’re also happy to say that its lead developer, Jase Morrissey, has joined us as our first Aussie. We have been working closely with Jase for the past several years, and are thrilled to officially welcome him to our team.

1 Oct, 2014

Giving back Reddit shares

Makes Statement0 Comments

Altman announces in an AMA that he and other investors in the latest round are giving part of their shares to users of the site:

We’re working on a way to give 10% of our shares from this round to the reddit community. I hope we can increase community ownership over time–I’ve always thought communities like reddit should mostly own themselves, and that it’s time for some innovation around corporate structure here. I’m giving the company a voting proxy on my shares.