Reddit bans anti-vaccine forum for spreading Covid denial misinformation

Popular social media platform Reddit has banned the r/NoNewNormal subreddit after a site-wide protest calling for its removal

Reddit has banned the r/NoNewNormal subreddit for spreading anti-mask and anti-vaccine misinformation about Covid-19. The platform also quarantined 54 other subreddits associated with COVID denial.

This is a divisive move for the platform, which advertises itself as a place for discussion and debate. The Reddit CEO affirmed this in a recent post. He highlighted that “this includes conversations that criticise those that disagree with the majority opinion”.

“We will continue to action communities that do so or that violate any of our other rules, including those dedicated to fraud (e.g. fake vaccine cards) or encouraging harm (e.g. consuming bleach),” he wrote.

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However, many users claim that this move doesn’t go far enough to stem the flow of misinformation shared on the site. Last month, Reddit users reported 2.5 thousand posts every day for misinformation.

You can still access the 54 other quarantined subreddits, but users are warned before accessing the community.

“We continue to believe in the good of our communities and hope that we collectively approach the challenges of the pandemic with empathy, compassion, and a willingness to understand what others are going through, even when their viewpoint on the pandemic is different from yours.” said Reddit CEO.