Reddit mods are calling for an ‘affordable return’ for third-party apps

Moderators of some of Reddit’s most popular communities have posted open letters to the company with a series of requests regarding many key issues at the heart of the recent protests on the platform. The requests include a way for third-party apps to make an “affordable return,” improvements to moderation tools and accessibility options that “match or exceed” what’s available with third-party apps, and filling a senior-level role of “Moderator Advocate” at the company.

More than 8,000 subreddits went dark earlier this month in protest of the company’s planned API pricing changes that will force apps like Apollo and rif is fun for Reddit to shut down on June 30th. Some subreddits continued to stay dark after the original 48-hour plan, but many moderators have reopened their communities after feeling pressure from Reddit itself. (A few communities have found some creative ways to reopen.)

The open letters are largely the same, calling for “a return to the productive dialogue that has served us in the past” between users and administrators (Reddit employees) and listing out a series of requests (taken from r/Funny’s letter😞

Commit to exploring ways by which third-party applications can make an affordable return.

Commit to providing moderation tools and accessibility options (on Old Reddit, New Reddit, and mobile platforms) which match or exceed the functionality and utility of third-party applications.

Commit to prioritizing a significant reduction in spam, misinformation, bigotry, and illegal content on Reddit.

Guarantee that any future developments which may impact moderators, contributors, or stakeholders will be announced no less than one fiscal quarter before they are scheduled to go into effect.

Work together with longstanding moderators to establish a reasonable roadmap and deadline for accomplishing all of the above.

Affirm that efforts meant to keep Reddit accountable to its commitments and deadlines will hereafter not be met with insults, threats, removals, or hostility.

Publicly affirm all of the above by way of updating Reddit’s User Agreement and Reddit’s Moderator Code of Conduct to include reasonable expectations and requirements for administrators’ behavior.

Implement and fill a senior-level role (with decision-making and policy-shaping power) of “Moderator Advocate” at Reddit, with a required qualification for the position being robust experience as a volunteer Reddit moderator.

The letters conclude by saying that while the company has “all but entirely eroded” its trust with those who wrote the letters, “we hope that together, we can begin to rebuild it.” The writers have asked for a response from Reddit by June 29th — a day before many third-party apps are set to shut down.

Communities that have shared open letters include r/Funny (more than 50 million subscribers), r/Showerthoughts (more than 27 million subscribers), and r/Jokes (more than 26 million subscribers). r/PICS and r/GIFs also shared letters but under seemingly tongue-in-cheek posts asking anyone who posts any Not Safe For Work (NSFW) content — including profanity — to mark that content as such so that the moderators do not need to make the entire community NSFW. (Reddit has said that it’s “not acceptable” for communities to go NSFW in protest.)

Despite the protests, Reddit has largely stood its ground. In an interview with The Verge, CEO Steve Huffman maintained that the company would not “subsidize businesses built on taking our data for free,” and in a memo obtained by The Verge, Huffman told employees that the blowup “will pass.” However, the company has made some concessions to address concerns from the accessibility community, including exempting accessibility-focused apps from the API pricing changes and promising to ship accessibility upgrades for moderators to its mobile apps by July 1st.

Reddit didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment. According to Reddit spokesperson Tim Rathschmidt, “We’ll no longer comment on hearsay, unsubstantiated claims, or baseless accusations from The Verge. We’ll be in touch as corrections are needed.”