Reddit Reportedly Begins Telling Mods To Reopen Shuttered Subreddits Or Face Replacement – SlashGear

While Reddit’s message does not outright state as such, the implication is pretty clear: the site is seeking to remove any mods that are supporting the subreddit blackouts, and replace them with mods that will re-open the subreddits.

In a recent fact sheet Reddit posted on Thursday, the site said that it would not force any private subreddits to re-open to the public. However, there’s a loophole in this claim: According to Reddit moderator u/ModCodeofConduct, the website does reserve the right to remove and replace any moderators that it believes are in violation of the site’s official Code of Conduct. According to Reddit spokesperson Tim Rathschmidt, who spoke to The Verge, participating in the blackouts could be considered code-violating behavior for a mod.

“If a moderator team unanimously decides to stop moderating, we will invite new, active moderators to keep these spaces open and accessible to users,” wrote u/ModCodeofConduct.

Unfortunately, there isn’t much that blackout-participating moderators or the users of their subreddits can do to stymie Reddit should it choose to remove and replace. For the moment, they have attempted to appeal to corporate directly with group messages urging them to understand the reason for the protest. According to its alleged leaked internal memo, though, Reddit has mostly downplayed or ignored the protest, confident that it will pass in time.