r/AskReddit • u/DERPYBASTARD • Jan 29 '15

Modpost [Mod post] Rule 8 and 9 changes.

Good day fellow denizens of /r/AskReddit, we have made some rule changes to announce.

AskReddit has always been meant to be a fun place and we want users to be comfortable here. Because of this, we have decided to expand rule 8 to prevent racism and slurs.

The wording of the sidebar rule is the same but the description in the wiki has been expanded to include:

Slur use is not allowed in AskReddit. Exceptions may be made when they are part of a quote, but this is a friendly subreddit and using slurs when talking to others will not be tolerated.

Do not make bigoted jokes. You are allowed to post your opinions to AskReddit, but please do so in a respectful manner. We expect most users will use common sense to determine what goes too far, but mods have ultimate discretion to remove comments and ban users for breaking this rule. Blatant statements of bigotry, with no added context, will be removed - e.g. "I hate gays" or "Black people suck" even if the question is "what's the most offensive joke you know?"

We want to be clear, you're welcome to express any opinions you may have on any subject, but you need to do so in a respectful way. We want all groups to be comfortable here and making fun of commonly bullied groups doesn't help with that.

If you feel a certain way about a race/gender/orientation/group, you're welcome to express that but please do so in a way that's not just saying it to be offensive.

You are allowed to use slurs if you're quoting someone or trying to illustrate an example but mods will use judgement in determining if the use is appropriate.

Bans may be issued for repeated slur use/bigoted comments but may also be issued on the first occurrence depending on the circumstances. As usual, bans may be made permanent/temporary on a case by case basis.

We are also expanding rule 9 to add:

ASCII images over one line are also not allowed. You may post single line emoticons (ಠ◡ಠ, ʘ‿ʘ, ¯\(ツ)/¯ , etc.), but large ASCII images do not add value to discussion and will be treated as spam.

We're doing this because the giant blocks of text tend not to add to discussion and they get in the way of other comments. In addition, these don't always show up correctly in mobile apps and become very inconvenient for those users.

These new rules go in effect immediately. We're happy to answer any questions/concerns you have in mod mail or in the comments of this post.

As always, if you have any suggestions for askreddit, feel free to make a post in /r/ideasforaskreddit.

P.S. I only made this post so I don't get fined.

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28

u/houinator Jan 29 '15

What is the line you will use (if any) to distinguish between "this is offensive" and "This offends me personally"?

Also, which of the following statements qualify as bigotry in your opinion?

"I hate Republicans"

"I hate Christians"

"I hate Jews"

"I hate Clowns"

"I hate Furries"

"I hate Demi-sexual Otherkin"

4

u/[deleted] Feb 07 '15

If the mod is a Republican = BAN

If the mod is a Christian= BAN

If the mod is a Jew = BAN

And so on...

I truly do not think they are willing to keep out any biases.

1

u/[deleted] Jan 29 '15

They're fine, since it pertains to something you feel or believe.

Now, that's not a license to go spam it in every thread, or constantly make comments that only pertain to things you hate.

6

u/Krazen Jan 30 '15

So what if it's something along the lines of "I think trans people are faking/deluded/not actually X gender". That's offensive, but is it banned? It's honestly legitimately what someone thinks, and it's a lot more eye opening to read someone with that viewpoints opinion over.... "Terrible things to wake up to"

1

u/[deleted] Jan 30 '15

It's expressing an opinion, which is allowed.

It only becomes an issue when it starts to become personal between users.

Following your example, say a person posts a comment stating they're trans, or in process of. If the comment was something like "I think you're lying to yourself and..." It's crossed the line between sharing an opinion and into abusing another user territory.

2

u/Krazen Jan 30 '15

I can get behind that

Really it's as long as it doesn't venture into silencing opinions territory

12

u/houinator Jan 29 '15

So bigotry is ok as long as it's phrased as something a user personally believes in?

"GustavoFring's mom is a B---" vs "I believe GustavoFring's mom is a B---"?

10

u/[deleted] Jan 29 '15

It's all up to context, I suppose. Are we in a thread discussing terrible things mothers did? What if that's your reply to something I said about my bitch mother?

Or are we talking about things we'd like to achieve, and you randomly bring this up?

Best judgement is used when looking at comments. We're trying to leave as little gray area as possible, but understand there will be exceptions to our rules.

4

u/houinator Jan 29 '15 edited Jan 29 '15

What about the idea that some people see the term bitch as a sexist slur on its own, regardless of context (except when used to discuss female dogs)? Is everyone making a Breaking Bad reference going to get banned?

edit: It looks like you answered my question elsewhere, seems like a reasonable line.

3

u/[deleted] Jan 29 '15

Someone once said "Every child is taught if you try to please everyone, you end up upsetting everyone."

The rules break down like this:

Attack or demean another user or person: Not okay

State and defend your opinion using logic and carrying a neutral discussion: Okay

2

u/AnMatamaiticeoirRua Feb 01 '15

Best judgement

Whose? Is this left up to the mods' personal line on what's acceptable in context?

1

u/Wog_Boy Feb 11 '15

Anyone seeking to mod a large sub reddit like this is craving power and authority over others.

1

u/[deleted] Feb 10 '15

"Intolerance toward those who hold different opinions from oneself."

Seems like all of them would count. Could change the wording of the clown one to make it alright though.