Reddit takes over one of the biggest protesting subreddits

Reddit is now in charge of r/malefashionadvice, which for a time was the biggest subreddit still closed in protest of the platform’s API pricing changes. The subreddit is now open, meaning Reddit users can browse content in the community once again, though in a restricted mode, meaning only certain users can make new posts.

As we reported last week, the moderators of r/malefashionadvice, a subreddit with than 5 million subscribers, had taken the community private and were pushing its users toward Discord and Substack instead. At the time, the moderators expected to be removed after receiving a message from a Reddit admin (employee), ModCodeofConduct, telling them they would be replaced if they didn’t reopen.

Three former moderators of r/malefashionadvice tell The Verge that they were removed from the subreddit on Thursday. “We more or less have been expecting the removal for the past few days,” one former mod, who asked to go by “Walker,” says in an email to The Verge. Now, the community’s modlist currently has just one moderator: ModCodeofConduct. Though despite the subreddit’s “restricted” status, somebody was able to make a post on Thursday that encourages community members to join the Discord.

It sounds like that Discord is getting some traction. Another former mod, “Zach,” told The Verge last week that it had 2,000 users; now, he says it’s up to 5,000. “The community and regulars coming to the Discord have been, on the whole, courteous and good company,” Walker says.

Reddit didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment. As of this writing, ModCodeofConduct is also the sole moderator of:

• r/ShittyLifeProTips (though ModCodeofConduct posted an open call on Thursday for new mods that has gotten some, uh, snarky responses)
• r/AccidentalRenaissance (which was private as of last week after its moderators resigned)
• r/oldbabies (pictures of babies with faces that look like old people)
• r/BeardAdvice (according to the Reddark tracker, this community participated in the recent blackouts)
• r/plumbingporn (also participated in the recent blackouts, per the Reddark tracker)
• r/fordtransit (a community dedicated to Ford Transit cargo vans)

Now, based on the Reddark tracker, the biggest subreddit still private is r/streetwear. According to Zach, who told me last week that he is also a mod of that community, it has more than 4 million subscribers. The subreddit also has a Discord.