Reddit Launches Mod Helper Program amid Tensions with Moderators

Over 8,000 subreddits shut down in June in protest of Reddit’s new API pricing.

Reddit has launched the Mod Helper Program to reward helpful moderators with trophies and flairs as tensions with the site’s moderators continue to run high. The site’s third-party moderators have shown dissatisfaction with Reddit’s API pricing and moderation tools. Reddit has launched the Modmail Answer Bot to automatically respond to requests and create a ticket when recommended articles do not answer the specific request, so the admin team can focus on more complex issues. Reddit is also merging the moderator-specific Help Center with its sitewide one to ensure that support resources are easily accessible from the same location.

Users at r/ModSupport will earn flairs and trophies by offering helpful comments to other moderators, while the moderator-specific help center has also received an update. The relationship between Reddit and its moderators has become increasingly strained in recent months. Over 8,000 subreddits shut down in June in protest of Reddit’s new API pricing. This  went into effect on July 1. The response to the peer-to-peer helper program has been mixed in r/ModSupport, with some users feeling the program is insufficient and an overdependence on volunteer moderators, while others feel that the gesture is a step in the right direction for Reddit.