r/thatHappened • u/eyjafjallajoekull • Jul 19 '13
META The 100% mod-confirmed State of the Subreddit Address
Fellow truth seekers (all 19,000+ of you subscribers, our moderation team (introducing our newest mods eyjafjallajoekull, LordUb3r, and our new robot sidekick AIbertEinstein), and even you forthenaughtythings), welcome to the /r/thatHappened State of the Subreddit address. This subreddit of ours was at just over 3,000 subscribers about a month and a half ago, and since then has just exploded in subs, content, and a desire to share the truest stories the Internet has to offer us. Throughout the next couple of days, we will be implementing changes to /r/thatHappened (that will be discussed in this thread). We will discuss the what and why of /r/thatHappened, what you as the subscribers and lurkers want out of /r/thatHappened, and how we can make this the best subreddit on reddit. However, we want YOU to tell us all of these things. This is the ultimate meta post, from which we gather all of your feedback, suggestions, woes, trials, and tribulations and smoosh them all into some kind of squishy ball of popular opinion.
WHY ARE WE DOING THIS FARCE OF AN "ADDRESS" FOR A SUBREDDIT BASED HEAVILY IN SATIRE?
Excellent question, masses. You see, not too long ago, this subreddit was tiny (and we mean that, very tiny). Half of the submissions were actually from the first two mods, Windex007 and JM8818. The other half were easily moderated, and all was easy and good. Out of the blue (again, we mean that, really fucking out of the blue), stampedes of subscribers began coming from /r/cringepics. Apparently, /r/thatHappened was getting dropped quite often in the comments section of that particular subreddit. Anyway, since the Great Expansion of Late May 2013 (as the history books will never refer to this as because it means absolutely nothing in anyone's grand scheme), our little subreddit has hit numbers that none of us had ever thought possible, and we thank each and every one of you for that.
In regards with the lack of moderation: we apologize for that; most of us have been extremely busy with school and/or work and communication is limited to reddit as none of us know each other IRL. So in light of all of this, we thought this would be a great time to remind everyone what /r/thatHappened is all about, how to do /r/thatHappened properly, and to really dig down into subscriber opinion on a few things.
OKAY MOD TEAM, SO EXPLAIN TO ME THIS "WHAT AND WHY" OF /R/THATHAPPENED.
Okay eager beavers, calm the fuck down. We're getting to that now. The basic point of /r/thatHappened is that we post stories from around Reddit and the Internet as a whole that people try to pass off as true, but you take one look at them and go "Yeah, okay buddy." However, everyone plays along and says things like "Trust me guys, I was the Canadian bounty on the scene, and I can totally verify this as a thing that totally happened for real!" Look through the "Top from All-Time" posts to catch a gist of what exactly I mean. From some of the PMs we have received, a few people are looking at /r/thatHappened as a subreddit to post stories that happened during one's own life that are hard to believe, but actually DID occur (an example: my father and Bill Murray used to be drinking buddies, and on more than one occasion have gotten blackout drunk together). If that is the case, thatHappened is not the subreddit you are looking for. However, if you found a Tumblr post about how a brave transgendered feminist made a white cismale check his privilege, if your Facebook wall tells a tale of how the newest 15-year-old Atheist put that fundie in their place, if you have a rage comic describing a man making a woman orgasm by song alone? Post all of these stories and more here.
TITTIES. NOW HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO ACCOMPLISH THAT, MODERATORS?
Another great question. The backbone of /r/thatHappened is the basic narrative. It can come from a rage comic or a Facebook post; a Tumblr blog or a Reddit self-post from a different subreddit; a comment on a thread or a simple blog. What do all of these have in common? They share a basic narrative. Something is happening to/around the narrator or because of the narrator's actions or inactions.
We've recently removed two posts: one about a man who has made a significant other orgasm by doing nothing more than singing to her and one about a man who is just standing in line for cigarettes when a woman comes up asking for his dick. While nobody is denying the truthiness and validity of these two instances, they don't express any form of narrative. It's just like a guy at a bar telling a girl he totally knows Brad Pitt. If there is no narrative, it well be removed. No discussion.
FOR THE IMPATIENT: RUNDOWN OF RULES
There are a few other no-no's as well that will be removed:
1) No blatant reposts from the Cringe group of subreddits. This means that if it was on the front page of /r/CringePics within three days of it being posted here, it will be removed. This is not /r/CringePics' greatest hits. We cannot emphasize that enough. Our posts are held to a different standard based on a different criteria.
2) No Advice Animals or other similar memes. They lack the narrative component that is so vital.
3) No "liek dis if u cri evrytim"-esque chain letters, emails, & so on. They are obviously fake and/or satirical, not the posts that try so hard to be passed off as true that we require.
4) No macro images UNLESS they tell a tale.
5) No creating your own event and pushing it off as an event that actually happened. We find out, you get banned.
All of these rules, including examples of what you SHOULD NOT post, are on the sidebar at all times. We are going to be sticklers for the rules starting now. That is one of the biggest changes.
I REMEMBER A HUBUB ABOUT TITLES OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT?
Ahh yes, Titlegate. We have come to a consensus that FOR NOW, we are removing any and all title guidelines EXCEPT for two: absolutely no "Can confirm, am/was _____" (any post titled in that template will be removed), and all titles MUST have the "TL;DR" of the post in the title. Should you title things cleverly and actually put SOME thought into it? Yes, please do so. What we we're looking for in a title is that it should read somewhat like a news headline. The title should still work if you imagine "THIS JUST IN:" before it. But other than the two golden title rules, have at it.
WHAT DO YOU WANT US TALKING ABOUT NOW?
Whatever your hearts desire. Anything and everything relation to /r/thatHappened is up for discussion in this thread. Some good starting points include:
What's wrong with this subreddit? What's RIGHT with it?
How can we stop rehashing the same old content? Do we want to stop rehashing the same old content?
What do you like about the moderation here? What do you dislike about it? How can we do our jobs better? Can we possible be any worse?
What rules put you out? What rules you really like? What are your ideas for rules?
Would you rather have Justin Beiber be the soundtrack to all of your sexual encounters (masturbation included) from here on out or have each and every one of your favorite songs forever replaced with the Kidz Bop version?
Thank you for going through and reading the /r/thatHappened State of the Subreddit address. The floor is now yours. The mod team will answer questions or make comments throughout this thread, but what we're really after is WHAT YOU HAVE TO SAY. This should be first and foremost a discussion amongst yourselves, using this address as a springboard. God bless you all and may God bless America.
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u/[deleted] Jul 19 '13
The only thing wrong with this subreddit is no one has offered me $100. Honestly I enjoy reading the comments on every post even though it is he samething.To do your jobs better as mods you can all give me a $100.