Reddit chief: I was late to spot GameStop stock mania

Reddit boss Steve Huffman has told BBC News he supported the aims of controversial sub-Reddit WallStreetBets.A long-time fan of the group, he said he had been slow in spotting its effect on GameStop's huge share-price spike in January."I was actually a little late to the party, because I didn't realise that Reddit had leaked into the real world again", he said.GameStop's share price ended up reaching nearly $500 (£350) before falling.WallStreetBets had been hyping up the computer-game retailer's shares.The idea was if enough Reddit users bought GameStop shares, they could drive up the price, hurting hedge funds who had bet against the company.Some claimed the group had collectively manipulated the market.But Reddit decided to leave it up."We were... trying to keep WallStreetBets online," Mr Huffman said.When the media talks about the big social-media platforms - Facebook, Twitter, Instagram - Reddit is often ignored.But as hedge funds learned during the GameStop share-price spike - ignore it at your peril.Reddit likes to think of itself as different.At its heart, it certainly feels more alternative.Its system of upvoting content mean ideas either fly or die.It's not called the front page of the internet for nothing.Mr Huffman has also had to deal with another big story this year - conspiracy theories peddled by Donald Trump about electoral fraud."What do you do when the president doesn't live up to the ideals, like the principles of our country?" Mr Huffman said.An influential sub-Reddit called TheDonald was instrumental in hyping up Mr Trump across the internet.Reddit banned it last year.Mr Huffman told BBC News it was the most difficult moderation decision he had had to make.Huffman is one of handful of men in Silicon Valley - along with Twitter's Jack Dorsey and Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg - that make huge decisions on what we can and can't see on the internet.The following interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.When did you first come across WallStreetBets?So I've known about WallStreetBets for years.WallStreetBets is, in fact, one of my guilty pleasures on Reddit.How much was the group about having a laugh?A lot of it, as I think it's the cornerstone to a lot of friendship and human experience.At the end of the day, this community is fun and it's funny.And obviously, there's some cohesion there, talking about the trades.When did you start realising WallStreetBets was having an impact on GameStop's share price?So I think I was actually a little late to this, because I've been on WallStreetBets for a while.And they've been talking about GameStop for a while.And so on WallStreetBets, there's often a couple of stocks or companies or positions that have their attention.And so over the years, it's been Tesla.It's been Virgin Galactic.It's been Blackberry.It's been different things.And so, in my mind, I'm just browsing Reddit and OK, yeah, GameStop's got their infatuation right now.So I was actually a little late to the party, because I didn't realise that Reddit had leaked into the real world again.And so it was, I think, really at the the take off of the mania when I was like: "OK, this is a bigger one."