11 ms·

It's worth noting that a very old user (/u/andrewsmith1986 IIRC) responded that at that time it was possible to add arbitrary users as mods without needing inte

It's worth noting that a very old user (/u/andrewsmith1986 IIRC) responded that at that time it was possible to add arbitrary users as mods without needing interaction/feedback/etc. from the user in question. If that was the case, then any user being a mod on any particular sub at that time doesn't really mean much. Obviously I can't reference the comment in question right now, but I'll try to remember to circle back and add a reference when(/if?) Reddit comes back up. Edit: /u/andrewsmith1986's comment can be found at https://old.reddit.com/r/dankmemes/comments/1477psa/all_3_are_going_to_lie_to_you/jnuy0xf/ https://old.reddit.com/r/dankmemes/comments/1477psa/all_3_ar...

the_gipsy 3y ago
Other users apart from u/andrewsmith1986 also confirmed this, in that thread. Sounds plausible.
Zak 3y ago
I remember the change to requiring people to accept an invite. Adding people as moderators of distasteful subreddits without their consent was a common form of abuse just prior.
wahnfrieden 3y ago
This counter-narrative is also misleading Consider: spez was the voluntary "mod" of the entire platform as CEO, and he maintained that subreddit. Excusing him for the unsolicited mod invite is just optics management. It would be like saying lowtax had no responsibility as co-signer for the existence of subforums that his paid or unpaid staff maintained.
bee_rider 3y ago
It seems like a funny distinction to make in the first place. Was he an admin of the site when it was hosting that sort of stuff? Anyone who was an admin at the time is responsible for the policies that allowed it to exist on the site…
roncesvalles 3y ago
I mean it's also worth noting that spez was CEO of Reddit and subreddits like that were allowed to exist for many, many more years.
- dionidium 3y ago
  And it would in turn be worth noting that the creators of reddit had a philosophical and political commitment to free speech that drove their light-touch approach to moderation. It's not like the existence of that subreddit is evidence of an endorsement on their part.
  - roncesvalles 3y ago
    Lascivious pictures of clothed children count as CSAM in many jurisdictions. Free speech is fine but did they not have lawyers until 2015?
    - WindyLakeReturn 3y ago
      At the time reddit was not some unknown back corner of the internet and had already begun working with law enforcement to enforce anti-CSAM laws due to material being treaded in private messages and private subreddits. That it took a media exposure take down the specific subreddit indicated that it was likely on the legal side of the line, through it was going close enough to the line to make others uncomfortable. If the material was actually illegal, wouldn't it have made reddit the largest clear-net site containing CSAM? In such a case, I find it hard to conceive that media exposure and not legal actions is why led to it shutting down, and with no admins being arrested it seems the most reasonable assumption left is that it was on the technically legal side. This would likely be like the use of underage subjects in nudist art, painted, drawn, or photographed. Such art is generally not considered pornographic and are legally protected, and some even displayed in museums and the like, yet websites will still ban the material to not have any relationship to it and to not have users trying to push the boundary. I'm speaking to the extent that rules are enforced, many websites have issues with enforcing rules in general due to the amount of user generated content being much larger than the amount of moderation available, so there will be something slipping through moderation from time to time.
JoyfulTurkey 3y ago
Damn, just looked at this account signup date and mine is older than it. Feeling ancient on a Monday morning :)
- tiffanyg 3y ago
  Hahaha, please, son ... Remember when Phrack was added to the LOC ... and was over 7 years old already (http://phrack.org/issues/42/1.html http://phrack.org/issues/42/1.html)? More seriously, you really start to feel "ancient" when your body goes from "new year, pretty much the same as old year" ... to ... "new year, who removed vital organs and bodily fluids while I slept last night?! The bastards!!!" Of course, it is a classic trope nevertheless ... and I did start to feel ancient even 15+ years ago ... but once you start noticing real changes, then you REALLY get that feel (and you know more is coming, lol): https://youtu.be/MqBNSMbEzI0 https://youtu.be/MqBNSMbEzI0
veave 3y ago
It's easy to prove, this is the code change that added the moderator invitation system: https://github.com/reddit-archive/reddit/commit/db7b531a7180fa84c24007cd69d728691d1e76d5?jp https://github.com/reddit-archive/reddit/commit/db7b531a7180...
- chromakode 3y ago
  I added that invitation flow in response to widespread abuse of the 1-way add moderator button. As an aside, the invitation message felt too bland and clinical during dev, so I added "gadzooks!" to the beginning, which became a meme for a while.
adhvaryu 3y ago
https://www.reddit.com/r/dankmemes/comments/1477psa/all_3_are_going_to_lie_to_you/jnuy487/ https://www.reddit.com/r/dankmemes/comments/1477psa/all_3_ar... >Back in the day, you used to be able to add anyone as a moderator and it auto accepted. >People would make shitty subs and add people, take a screenshot, shut down the sun or make private, then use that screenshot to start a witch hunt. Violentacrez could have added you as a mod of the sub and you'd be in the same situation. >TL:DR I used to mod a sub with Barack Obama and Snoop Dogg.
kaiken1987 3y ago
Oh man that's a username I have seen in a log time. Wasn't there a theory that they were multiple people using a single account?
rodgerd 3y ago
He was also part of the team that gave the owner of the sub awards. It's not really credible to claim that spez wasn't somehow very enthusiastic about it.

the_gipsy 3y ago

Other users apart from u/andrewsmith1986 also confirmed this, in that thread. Sounds plausible.

Zak 3y ago

I remember the change to requiring people to accept an invite. Adding people as moderators of distasteful subreddits without their consent was a common form of abuse just prior.

wahnfrieden 3y ago

This counter-narrative is also misleading Consider: spez was the voluntary "mod" of the entire platform as CEO, and he maintained that subreddit. Excusing him for the unsolicited mod invite is just optics management. It would be like saying lowtax had no responsibility as co-signer for the existence of subforums that his paid or unpaid staff maintained.

bee_rider 3y ago

It seems like a funny distinction to make in the first place. Was he an admin of the site when it was hosting that sort of stuff? Anyone who was an admin at the time is responsible for the policies that allowed it to exist on the site…

roncesvalles 3y ago

I mean it's also worth noting that spez was CEO of Reddit and subreddits like that were allowed to exist for many, many more years.

dionidium 3y ago
And it would in turn be worth noting that the creators of reddit had a philosophical and political commitment to free speech that drove their light-touch approach to moderation. It's not like the existence of that subreddit is evidence of an endorsement on their part.
- roncesvalles 3y ago
  Lascivious pictures of clothed children count as CSAM in many jurisdictions. Free speech is fine but did they not have lawyers until 2015?
  - WindyLakeReturn 3y ago
    At the time reddit was not some unknown back corner of the internet and had already begun working with law enforcement to enforce anti-CSAM laws due to material being treaded in private messages and private subreddits. That it took a media exposure take down the specific subreddit indicated that it was likely on the legal side of the line, through it was going close enough to the line to make others uncomfortable. If the material was actually illegal, wouldn't it have made reddit the largest clear-net site containing CSAM? In such a case, I find it hard to conceive that media exposure and not legal actions is why led to it shutting down, and with no admins being arrested it seems the most reasonable assumption left is that it was on the technically legal side. This would likely be like the use of underage subjects in nudist art, painted, drawn, or photographed. Such art is generally not considered pornographic and are legally protected, and some even displayed in museums and the like, yet websites will still ban the material to not have any relationship to it and to not have users trying to push the boundary. I'm speaking to the extent that rules are enforced, many websites have issues with enforcing rules in general due to the amount of user generated content being much larger than the amount of moderation available, so there will be something slipping through moderation from time to time.

JoyfulTurkey 3y ago

Damn, just looked at this account signup date and mine is older than it. Feeling ancient on a Monday morning :)

tiffanyg 3y ago
Hahaha, please, son ... Remember when Phrack was added to the LOC ... and was over 7 years old already (http://phrack.org/issues/42/1.html http://phrack.org/issues/42/1.html)? More seriously, you really start to feel "ancient" when your body goes from "new year, pretty much the same as old year" ... to ... "new year, who removed vital organs and bodily fluids while I slept last night?! The bastards!!!" Of course, it is a classic trope nevertheless ... and I did start to feel ancient even 15+ years ago ... but once you start noticing real changes, then you REALLY get that feel (and you know more is coming, lol): https://youtu.be/MqBNSMbEzI0 https://youtu.be/MqBNSMbEzI0

veave 3y ago

It's easy to prove, this is the code change that added the moderator invitation system: https://github.com/reddit-archive/reddit/commit/db7b531a7180fa84c24007cd69d728691d1e76d5?jp https://github.com/reddit-archive/reddit/commit/db7b531a7180...

chromakode 3y ago
I added that invitation flow in response to widespread abuse of the 1-way add moderator button. As an aside, the invitation message felt too bland and clinical during dev, so I added "gadzooks!" to the beginning, which became a meme for a while.

adhvaryu 3y ago

https://www.reddit.com/r/dankmemes/comments/1477psa/all_3_are_going_to_lie_to_you/jnuy487/ https://www.reddit.com/r/dankmemes/comments/1477psa/all_3_ar... >Back in the day, you used to be able to add anyone as a moderator and it auto accepted. >People would make shitty subs and add people, take a screenshot, shut down the sun or make private, then use that screenshot to start a witch hunt. Violentacrez could have added you as a mod of the sub and you'd be in the same situation. >TL:DR I used to mod a sub with Barack Obama and Snoop Dogg.

kaiken1987 3y ago

Oh man that's a username I have seen in a log time. Wasn't there a theory that they were multiple people using a single account?

rodgerd 3y ago

He was also part of the team that gave the owner of the sub awards. It's not really credible to claim that spez wasn't somehow very enthusiastic about it.