Last week, Reddit CEO Steve Huffman (u/spez) said that the site will not ban covid-19 misinformation because it values "dissent."
Huffman, who once moderated a subreddit on cannibalism, said that while the site will encourage users to seek authoritative information on Covid-19 from the CDC, it would not stop people from posting content that runs counter to government guidelines.
"Dissent is a part of Reddit and the foundation of democracy. Reddit is a place for open and authentic discussion and debate," Huffman wrote in a lengthy post.
Huffman's note came in response to dozens of subreddits having gone 'private' protest the vaccine and mask-skeptic 'r/NoNewNormal' subreddit - vowing to stay locked until it was banned from the platform.
On Wednesday, Reddit did just that, banning NoNewNormal. Admin 'worstnerd' posted an even lengthier screed defending their about-face. In it, he accuses NoNewNormal users - without evidence - of 'brigading' other forums (invading them to cause trouble).
In short, Reddit used an evidence-free claim to banish a forum which had 120,000 members engaging in "open and authentic discussion and debate" over vaccines, masks, and authoritarianism.
In addition, Reddit also 'quarantined' 54 other subreddits associated with vaccine and mask hesitancy, removing them from site-wide searches and in some cases, forcing users to verify their email address before they can view quarantined content. Prior to its ban, NoNewNormal had been...