Reddit says it won’t force subreddits back open (but will it?)

Image by Alex Castro / The Verge

Reddit is pledging it will respect the subreddit blackout where thousands of subreddits are currently staying dark — but it’s not clear the company actually will.

“We are not shutting down discussions or unilaterally reopening communities,” reads a line from a “Reddit API Fact Sheet” that the company shared with The Verge alongside our full Reddit CEO interview.

But that word “unilaterally” may be doing a awful lot of work — because Reddit has apparently given itself a framework and justification to eject the moderators who support a blackout, replacing them with those who would re-open the sub.

On Reddit, the ModCodeofConduct account has informed moderators that it will replace inactive moderators with active ones, even if they all...

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