Reddit just admitted it royally screwed up. Not just over the firing of Reddit community manager Victoria Taylor on Friday, but also for not listening to the community over the past several years.
Volunteer Reddit moderators systematically shut down threads in protest after hearing of Taylor’s dismissal last week. Many said she was the only moderator who got them and communicated with them during Reddit’s “Ask Me Anything” interviews.
Interim CEO Ellen Pao posted an apology to the Reddit community today with the following message:
We screwed up. Not just on July 2, but also over the past several years. We haven’t communicated well, and we have surprised moderators and the community with big changes. We have apologized and made promises to you, the moderators and the community, over many years, but time and again, we haven’t delivered on them. When you’ve had feedback or requests, we haven’t always been responsive. The mods and the community have lost trust in me and in us, the administrators of reddit.
Today, we acknowledge this long history of mistakes. We are grateful for all you do for reddit, and the buck stops with me.
Pao goes on with a promise to improve – and not just in words, but in deeds by appointing u/deimorz and u/weffey to work with team moderators for building and improving tools moderators need. Pao also appointed u/krispykrackers as a moderator advocate and said she would add the option for moderators to default to the old search, enabling moderators to stay updated on existing workflows.
“We’re also going to figure out the best way for more administrators, including myself, to talk more often with the whole community,” writes Pao.
Disrupt 2026: The tech ecosystem, all in one room
Your next round. Your next hire. Your next breakout opportunity. Find it at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, where 10,000+ founders, investors, and tech leaders gather for three days of 250+ tactical sessions, powerful introductions, and market-defining innovation. Register now to save up to $400.
Save up to $300 or 30% to TechCrunch Founder Summit
1,000+ founders and investors come together at TechCrunch Founder Summit 2026 for a full day focused on growth, execution, and real-world scaling. Learn from founders and investors who have shaped the industry. Connect with peers navigating similar growth stages. Walk away with tactics you can apply immediately
Offer ends March 13.
True to Reddit, the community responded with demands in the comments below the post – many of them negative, though some thanking Pao for making the effort.
One interesting part of the apology is that Pao does not specifically comment on the firing of Taylor or anything she might do surrounding the action that originally led to this uproar.
