r/mildlyinteresting • u/RedSquaree • Jun 23 '23

META What happened to /r/mildlyinteresting?

13k Upvotes

Dear mildlyinterested reader,

We want to extend our heartfelt gratitude for your patience and unwavering support during the recent turbulence in our community. Our subreddit is a labour of love, and we've weathered this storm together.

Recent events have been confusing for all of us, from the vote, sudden removal of moderators, to conflicting messages from Reddit. As your mod team, we feel it's essential to clarify the situation.

On June 19, the poll results favoured partially reopening with changes. However, before implementing these changes, Reddit took sweeping actions, removing all 27 moderator accounts without warning. This left us baffled and concerned.

Here's a brief timeline of the events:

On June 19, the poll results favoured partially reopening with changes. We announced the vote results and planned changes to the sub, including marking it as NSFW due to the common posts of phallic objects (no explicit content allowed). CLICK HERE TO VIEW THAT ANNOUNCEMENT WHICH HAS BEEN APPROVED AND LOCKED FOR POSTERITY.
A tug-of-war between the u/ModeratorCodeOfConduct account and the remaining moderators ensued, with the post repeatedly being removed and reinstated. Each mod involved was immediately locked out of Reddit. Subreddit settings were also unilaterally changed by the admin account.
Eventually, all moderators were removed and suspended for 7 days, with the vote results deleted and the community set to “archived.”
A lot of public outrage ensued, with details posted on r/ModCoord about what happened. At that point, no other subreddit had been targeted yet, leaving the situation uniquely unclear.
Admin cited actions as an "error" and promised to work with us to solve the situation. For /r/mildlyinteresting posterity, this will henceforth be referred to as The Mistake™.
All our accounts were unsuspended and reinstated, but only with very limited permissions (modmail access only). For what it's worth, 'time moderated' for every moderator was reset (e.g. /u/RedSquaree moderated since 11 years ago, reset: currently showing moderated since "1 day ago").
The awaited discussion never happened. Instead, the admins presented us with an ultimatum: reopen the subreddit and do not mark it as NSFW, or face potential removal again. The inconsistent and arbitrary application of Reddit's policies reveals a possible conflict of interest in maximizing ad revenue at the risk of user safety and community integrity.
Finally, our moderation permissions were restored after we "promised" to comply with their conditions, but we kept the subreddit restricted while we ponder our next steps..

Problems remain unresolved, and Reddit's approach to policies and communication have been troubling. We believe open communication and partnership between Reddit and its moderators are crucial for the platform's success.

As a team, we remain dedicated to protesting Reddit's careless policy changes. Removing ourselves or vandalizing the subreddit won’t achieve our goals, but rather hinder our community. We're here to ensure r/mildlyinteresting isn't left unattended.

We call for the establishment of clear, structured, and reliable communication channels between Reddit admins and moderation teams. Teams should be informed and consulted on decisions affecting their communities to maintain trust and integrity on the platform. We shared this request with the Admin who promised to work with us, so far they have ignored it.

Us mods are still deciding how exactly to reopen, not that we have been given much choice.

Sincerely,

The r/mildlyinteresting mods

2.5k comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/The_Portlandian • 1h ago

My neighbor parks on carpet

• Upvotes

350 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/pichirry • 7h ago

Depigmentation of my kitten's nose

2.6k Upvotes

59 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/stanchfi • 9h ago

Early 90's Taco Bell $0.39 Value Sides menu

1.6k Upvotes

193 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/midwife_at_ur_cervix • 2h ago

This new bridge build has the year 2029 imprinted into it

397 Upvotes

150 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/cdscivic • 3h ago

Nicely aligned shadow of my house and backyard

332 Upvotes

30 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/PuzzledPoetry1447 • 19h ago

the harmless black staining of my fingers after opening black chestnuts

7.6k Upvotes

610 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/groovyiguana56 • 7h ago

The water stain on my bookshelf looks like 2Pac

623 Upvotes

74 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/demomagic • 5h ago

I found a peculiar key in my driveway this morning

396 Upvotes

110 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/Androgynyy • 18h ago

I work in a freezer and the skin peels off my fingers and stay wrinkly even hours after my shift ends

5.4k Upvotes

867 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/Sad_Commercial4031 • 22h ago

woke up to a grave yard of ants that tried drinking baby oil

6.4k Upvotes

188 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/SimplyTheAverage • 8h ago

This handle on the back of a chair at a restaurant

409 Upvotes

27 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/681681 • 7h ago

My old Calvin & Hobbes book has a grammatical error from 1989

249 Upvotes

67 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/chadbaker117 • 19h ago

My friend found a Pork Rind that looks like it’s giving a Thumbs Up

2.1k Upvotes

70 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/ObtuseWaffle_ • 1d ago

I got mad and threw a rock at a bucket, the rock cracked open and was really pretty inside

6.2k Upvotes

133 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/ThunderPrincess667 • 5h ago

Took a photo of a crow mid-blink today

111 Upvotes

4 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/Loubrockshakur • 4h ago

This caterpillar took on the color of it’s food

83 Upvotes

9 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/OstentatiousIt • 1d ago

I found a peanut that has 3 halves (hemispheres)

4.9k Upvotes

457 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/tiamat234 • 1d ago

My FiL caught this comically small fish

14k Upvotes

294 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/the_most_playerest • 1d ago

The tree stump my dog pees on every day for the last 18 months.

3.4k Upvotes

90 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/gucci__goblin • 1d ago

This bird keeps landing on my brother’s hand

8.8k Upvotes

148 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/Asssaspen • 5h ago

The edges of my book have been sun bleached - looks like old varnish removed from a painting

75 Upvotes

5 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/ThunderChief__ • 19h ago

Really weird hair I lost today

947 Upvotes

109 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/Relevant_Gas4430 • 1d ago

Multicolored Bell pepper from my garden

2.0k Upvotes

42 comments

r/mildlyinteresting • u/Wooshio • 19h ago

Mad Magazine predicted vaping in their 1964 issue spoofing hypothetical devices for safer smoking.

586 Upvotes

120 comments

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For photos that are, you know, mildly interesting

r/mildlyinteresting

Aww, cripes. I didn't know I'd have to write a description. How many words is that so far, like a hundred? Soooo, yeah. Mildly interesting stuff. Stuff that interests you. Mildly. It's in the name, ffs.

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Does your post qualify for /r/MildlyInteresting? Hover below for more info, and check out our wiki page!

1. No memes

This includes references in titles of your post (e.g. "banana for scale," "potato quality").

2. No related posts

Posts that acknowledge, "one-up," or relate specifically to another post are not allowed (e.g. "I see your X and raise you Y")

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Do not post something that has been submitted anywhere on reddit before (including here), even if you were the one who posted it.

Exception: If a post is deleted or removed from /r/mildlyinteresting for breaking the rules less than one hour after being submitted or receives less than 100 upvotes, we allow the submitter to resubmit a fixed version of the post. Posts deleted or removed from other subreddits are not exempt from rule 3.

4. Original [OC] photographs only

a. No gifs, videos, or websites.

b. All submissions must be original content. If you didn't take the photo, don't post it.

c. Software glitches/errors, overlaid text, arrows, scribbles, and other substantive edits are not allowed, although you may censor personal information per Reddit-wide rules.

d. Side by side images are okay if they adhere to the rest of the rules.

5. No screens or screenshots

No screenshots or images taken from screens. This includes photos of screens taken with another device, video stills or frames, X-rays and other medical imaging, images partially or fully generated by a computer, pictures of printed screenshots, and uncropped camera-roll/gallery screenshots. Segmented displays, such as digital clocks, calculators, or similar displays, are allowed. Try /r/screenshots!

6. Titles must be an exact but concise description of the content

a. Titles must not contain jokes, backstory, or other fluff. That information belongs in a follow-up comment.

b. Titles must exactly describe the content. It should act as a "spoiler" for the image. If your title leaves people surprised at the content within, it breaks the rule!

c. Titles must not contain emoticons, emojis, or special characters unless they are absolutely necessary in describing the image. (e.g. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°), ;P, 😜, ❤, ★, ✿ )

Still confused? For more elaboration and examples, see here first and then message the mods if you still have questions.

If unsure, please message the mods and we will help determine if your post is acceptable.

For further information regarding our rules, flairs, moderation policy, and frequently asked questions, please take a look at the… /r/MildlyInteresting Wiki (packed with tons of juicy mildly interesting information)

Posts which break the rules will be removed on sight. This subreddit operates a three-strikes rule on submission bans, and instant bans on troll and/or gimmick accounts, shock links, etc. at moderator discretion.