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13 Jan 2012 00:52

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Tech: Reddit, Wikipedia want the Internet to imagine a life with SOPA

  • downtime To demonstrate what Internet life might be like with SOPA/PIPA in the mix, Reddit will be shut down on Jan. 18. Instead, users can watch a livestream of a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee meeting on DNS and search engine blocking, where the site’s co-founder, Alexis Ohanian, will offer remarks to Congress.
  • backup Wikipedia co-founder, Jimmy Wales, has expressed his support of Reddit’s move, and may even work with the site, potentially creating a similar shutdown of Wikipedia. With big websites explicitly showing users what a life with SOPA/PIPA is like, could public outrage crop up? And will Google or Facebook join in? source
Posted by samimain • 0 Comments • Permalink

04 Feb 2011 21:24

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Culture: Reddit’s hivemind accidentally turns on girl’s cancer fundraiser

  • cause A girl who was looking to raise donations for a charity head-shaving event (in support of cancer victims) posted a few times on Reddit for the campaign.
  • effect The Reddit community turned on her after one user claimed she was a total scammer; even the FBI was called. Problem was, the girl was a real girl and not lying.
  • result The Redditor was proven wrong, and she even ended up raising a couple more bucks than she would’ve otherwise – and Gawker even wrote about her. source
  • » Postscript: Now, after scolding Reddit for almost ruining a girl’s head-shaving campaign, the site’s community manager, Erik Martin, is offering to shave his head if the site can raise $30,000. As for the girl, Maya Gilsey of St. Lawrence University, she got her head shaved today. Good for her.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

06 Dec 2010 23:21

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Politics: Reddit’s grassroots political efforts ready for their close-up

  • You know what’s cool? When friggin’ Reddit fights for what it believes in. We posted about this phenomenon a month ago when it was tentatively called RPAC, and from there, they’ve kept it up. The Open Source Democracy Foundation (a 501(c)(4), not a PAC) is ready for its close-up, and their first order of business is net neutrality. “Regardless of peoples’ ideologies and political persuasions,” says the organization’s founder, Eddie Geller, “we find it hard to believe anyone wants the Internet to be less free or less open.” With the the SavetheInternet.com Coalition, they’re working on a letter-writing campaign to the FCC. But lest you think they’ve outgrown their roots, they’re still on Reddit, collectively plotting their next steps. Keep an eye on these guys. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 1 Comment • Permalink

02 Dec 2010 20:59

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Offbeat: Two can play that game: Dude rejiggers cheating girlfriend’s Netflix

  • One Reddit user decided to hit his cheating girlfriend where it hurts. So he went to Netflix and started ratings until he was able to come up with this really harsh list of I-know-you’re-cheating classics. Wait a second … Bambi? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

02 Dec 2010 00:34

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Culture: Stephen Colbert chats with Reddit about being “Stephen Colbert”

  • Let me say that the President could not have been nicer, especially to my mother. I have some lovely pictures of her with him.
  • Stephen Colbert • Discussing his interactions with George W. Bush at the White House Correspondent’s Association Dinner, where he made a controversial 2006 appearance. Colbert was asked about the situation by a Redditor in a lengthy, out-of-character interview that he largely wrote in all-caps. Other interesting topics covered: A congressman tried to walk off the stage while he was shooting in DC (but they got him to stay), he always tells his interviewees that he’s in character (“I admire Sacha Baron Cohen, but I am not doing Ali G.”) and he claims that the dumber he sounds about a topic, the more he knows about it. Fun read. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

09 Nov 2010 21:34

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Culture: Spiffy: Reddit users build their own political action committee

  • So, to anyone who thinks Reddit is just a bunch of silly videos and a meme machine, here’s probably the most interesting use of the site so far. A Reddit political action committee. Their issues? Net neutrality, campaign finance reform, and a general emphasis on progress before profit. This is why Reddit is different. We don’t see anyone making a DiggPAC. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 1 Comment • Permalink

25 Oct 2010 21:14

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Tech: Digg realizes that too many people are working for them

  • six the number of people who work on Reddit’s entire site
  • 67 the number of people who work on Digg at the moment
  • 25 the number of staffers Digg will be cutting to get profitable source
  • » Cutting the “overhead”: Why is it that Reddit has a much smaller staff, yet is completely kicking Digg’s butt at the moment? Good question. Either way, Digg (which is unprofitable) is cutting 37 percent of its staff in an effort to rebuild lost momentum in the platform and cut significant costs. “It’s been an incredibly tough decision,” wrote Matt Williams, the company’s brand-new CEO. “I wish it weren’t necessary. However, I know it’s the right choice for Digg’s future success as a business.” Also, a product refocus is coming very soon to correct the last one.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

17 Sep 2010 11:23

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Tech: Comparison: Posterous is big. Tumblr is a phenomenon.

  • Posterous is growing, yeah, but Tumblr is basically going to be the next Twitter. Eight million unique visitors per month versus less than two million? It’s not really a contest. (Though in Posterous’ defense, though, other companies such as Reddit have complained that these stats  aren’t always accurate – we know, for example, that our stats are totally off and our numbers in July, for example, are nearly triple what Compete says they are.) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

30 Aug 2010 18:43

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Tech: Thoughts on the Digg user revolt currently taking place

  • YES. DIGG SUCKS.
  • But not for the reason you think. It’s not because of its sudden change that it started sucking. It’s because it’s designed to encourage a minority of viewpoints, instead of the democratic thang that it sells itself as. It can be corrupted. It can be influenced. Fact of the matter is, Digg has never been about letting anyone have a voice. It’s structured in a way that makes it difficult for the small fry, whether they’re simply a small blog or an average user, to have any actual influence. At least with this redesign, Digg is being honest about it. The best part? They’ve actually made the site approachable to outsiders rather than the insular thing it had become. Instead of complaining about the changes, learn to accept them. Or go to Reddit. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Aug 2010 23:12

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Tech: Will Cheezburger Network’s Ben Huh tweeted Reddit offer work?

Condé Nast, I’m publicly offering to buy Reddit.: This was an email I sent to one of our sites, The Daily What: Hi… http://bit.ly/9keWv1Sat Aug 28 00:44:56 via twitterfeedbenhuh
benhuh

  • What happened? Reddit wanted to accept ads in favor of California’s pot-legalizing Prop. 19, which owner Condé Nast said was a big no-no. So they offered to run the ads for free.
  • A tweeted offer Not long after, Cheezburger Network CEO Ben Huh made an unsolicited offer to buy the business from Condé Nast. And he tweeted it. That’s postmodern.
  • Why that may be bad Ben Huh severely underpays his workers for work that requires a college education. We already covered it in detail. We don’t need to say anything else. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
 
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