r/mildlyinteresting Jun 23 '23

META What happened to /r/mildlyinteresting?

11.9k Upvotes

Dear mildlyinterested reader,

We want to extend our heartfelt gratitude for your patience and unwavering support during the recent turbulence in our community. Our subreddit is a labour of love, and we've weathered this storm together.

Recent events have been confusing for all of us, from the vote, sudden removal of moderators, to conflicting messages from Reddit. As your mod team, we feel it's essential to clarify the situation.

On June 19, the poll results favoured partially reopening with changes. However, before implementing these changes, Reddit took sweeping actions, removing all 27 moderator accounts without warning. This left us baffled and concerned.

Here's a brief timeline of the events:

  1. On June 19, the poll results favoured partially reopening with changes. We announced the vote results and planned changes to the sub, including marking it as NSFW due to the common posts of phallic objects (no explicit content allowed). CLICK HERE TO VIEW THAT ANNOUNCEMENT WHICH HAS BEEN APPROVED AND LOCKED FOR POSTERITY.

  2. A tug-of-war between the u/ModeratorCodeOfConduct account and the remaining moderators ensued, with the post repeatedly being removed and reinstated. Each mod involved was immediately locked out of Reddit. Subreddit settings were also unilaterally changed by the admin account.

  3. Eventually, all moderators were removed and suspended for 7 days, with the vote results deleted and the community set to “archived.”

  4. A lot of public outrage ensued, with details posted on r/ModCoord about what happened. At that point, no other subreddit had been targeted yet, leaving the situation uniquely unclear.

  5. Admin cited actions as an "error" and promised to work with us to solve the situation. For /r/mildlyinteresting posterity, this will henceforth be referred to as The Mistake™.

  6. All our accounts were unsuspended and reinstated, but only with very limited permissions (modmail access only). For what it's worth, 'time moderated' for every moderator was reset (e.g. /u/RedSquaree moderated since 11 years ago, reset: currently showing moderated since "1 day ago").

  7. The awaited discussion never happened. Instead, the admins presented us with an ultimatum: reopen the subreddit and do not mark it as NSFW, or face potential removal again. The inconsistent and arbitrary application of Reddit's policies reveals a possible conflict of interest in maximizing ad revenue at the risk of user safety and community integrity.

  8. Finally, our moderation permissions were restored after we "promised" to comply with their conditions, but we kept the subreddit restricted while we ponder our next steps..

Problems remain unresolved, and Reddit's approach to policies and communication have been troubling. We believe open communication and partnership between Reddit and its moderators are crucial for the platform's success.

As a team, we remain dedicated to protesting Reddit's careless policy changes. Removing ourselves or vandalizing the subreddit won’t achieve our goals, but rather hinder our community. We're here to ensure r/mildlyinteresting isn't left unattended.

We call for the establishment of clear, structured, and reliable communication channels between Reddit admins and moderation teams. Teams should be informed and consulted on decisions affecting their communities to maintain trust and integrity on the platform. We shared this request with the Admin who promised to work with us, so far they have ignored it.

Us mods are still deciding how exactly to reopen, not that we have been given much choice.

Sincerely,

The r/mildlyinteresting mods


r/mildlyinteresting 12h ago

Found a used razor stash in the wall.

Thumbnail
image
31.3k Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 6h ago

I got this unsealed envelope from AT&T today.

Thumbnail
image
3.0k Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 8h ago

The screwdriver that came with my order of cabinet knobs

Thumbnail
image
3.2k Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 6h ago

This Ventilation in an auto shop that clearly shows where the air escapes

Thumbnail
image
1.8k Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 7h ago

From a booklet given to soldiers in Vietnam

Thumbnail
image
1.4k Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 13h ago

What 10 dollars in groceries looks like in Algeria

Thumbnail
image
3.4k Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 8h ago

Today I saw the clearest natural expression of the visible light spectrum that I’ve ever seen.

Thumbnail
image
1.2k Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 12h ago

A random pigeon sat on my head.

Thumbnail
image
1.5k Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 9h ago

Some sort of animal spine on my dog walk

Thumbnail
image
853 Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 23h ago

The difference between a trimmed palm tree and a wild palm tree

Thumbnail
image
14.1k Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 9h ago

This Burger King next to some historical buildings has black and white signs

Thumbnail
image
685 Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 2h ago

Free beef fat at the local thrift store - Unrefrigerated-

Thumbnail
image
168 Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 6h ago

I‘m growing lawn in my office

Thumbnail
image
357 Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 11h ago

Brutally honest hotdog manufacturer

Thumbnail
image
798 Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 7h ago

It’s marked 140 calories on the box and 130 on the can

Thumbnail
image
249 Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 1d ago

This rock I found washed up on the beach is almost perfectly square

Thumbnail
image
5.7k Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 7h ago

The Goodwill thrift shop down the street has a hammer, bottle of cologne, and a copy of Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2010 for the Playstation 3. This is in the glass case next to the cash registers

Thumbnail
image
199 Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 1h ago

T-Shirts are sized way differently in the US compared to Europe and Australia.

Thumbnail
image
Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 15h ago

My tiny secret attic workspace in Copenhagen, Denmark

Thumbnail
image
717 Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 8h ago

Classsic car from my schools car show

Thumbnail
image
141 Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 3h ago

My dog made a race track in my back yard (it goes around the whole pool)

Thumbnail
image
57 Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 1h ago

Goodyear also makes tires for your feet.

Thumbnail
image
Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 1d ago

there is a waiver on my receipt for takeout shawarma

Thumbnail
image
10.8k Upvotes

r/mildlyinteresting 9h ago

My wife’s coffee smiled at her this morning

Thumbnail
image
117 Upvotes