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Reddit didn't need to apologise after the Boston Marathon bombing Reddit didn't need to apologise after the Boston Marathon bombing
(about 5 hours later)
There are many things that people need to apologize for in the wake of the Boston marathon bombing, but Reddit apologizing for users failing to follow site rules is nowhere near the top of this "I'm sorry" list. Nevertheless, that's what we got on Monday from Reddit's GM Erik Martin in an official Reddit blog post. While it is true Martin's sentiment is sweet, what exactly is Reddit apologizing for again? Especially when no one else has? There are many things that people need to apologize for in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombing, but Reddit apologizing for users failing to follow site rules is nowhere near the top of the list. Yet, that's what we got on Monday from Reddit's general manager Erik Martin in an official Reddit blogpost:
"However, though started with noble intentions, some of the activity on Reddit fueled online witchhunts and dangerous speculation which spiraled into very negative consequences for innocent parties. The Reddit staff and the millions of people on Reddit around the world deeply regret that this happened."
Martin's sentiments are sincere and well-intentioned. But what exactly is Reddit apologizing for again?
The immediate aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombing saw people scrambling to help, whether they were healthcare and law enforcement professionals trained to do just that or novice internet detectives with hours of mental fuel to burn.The immediate aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombing saw people scrambling to help, whether they were healthcare and law enforcement professionals trained to do just that or novice internet detectives with hours of mental fuel to burn.
Much ado has been made of web citizens turning the Boston bombing investigation into a crowdsourced one on the r/FindBostonBombers subreddit. The photos of potential suspects wearing backpacks circled in red (originally from image sharing website 4chan) were circulated far and wide by media outlets complaining about the dangers of this type of behavior. While it is true Reddit policies itself and prohibits users from posting personal information or engaging in witch hunts, personal information of the falsely accused was screenshotted before it was deleted and shared outside of Reddit's confines, something Reddit then complained about. Much ado has been made of web citizens turning the Boston bombing investigation into a crowdsourced one on the r/FindBostonBombers subreddit. The photos of potential suspects wearing backpacks circled in red (originally from image-sharing website 4chan) were circulated far and wide by media outlets complaining about the dangers of this type of behavior.
The New York Post's "Bag Men" cover story – featuring a photo of two falsely accused suspects apparently taken from Reddit and not from the FBI – certainly didn't help matters. It is true that Reddit polices itself and prohibits users from posting personal information or engaging in witch-hunts, but personal information of the falsely accused was screenshot before it was deleted and shared outside of Reddit's confines – something Reddit itself complained about. The New York Post's "Bag Men" cover story – featuring a photo of two falsely implicated suspects apparently taken from Reddit and not from the FBI – certainly didn't help matters.
The subreddit's unofficial, frenzied investigation was so interesting to the media, it ended up dominating the news cycle. Reuters finance blogger Felix Salmon likened Reddit's investigation to "backchannel noise" in his piece lightly scolding the media's fascination with the online community's activity titled "The social media tail mustn't wag the MSM dog": The subreddit's unofficial, frenzied investigation was so interesting to the media, it became a story in itself. Reuters finance blogger Felix Salmon scolded the media for its fascination with the Reddit online community's activity:
"No mainstream journalism outlet should allow its coverage of a major story to be hijacked by backchannel noise.""No mainstream journalism outlet should allow its coverage of a major story to be hijacked by backchannel noise."
Words to remember for next time, and surely something to apologize for. No media outlet fell on their sword, however, which isn't surprising of Glenn Beck or Alex Jones, but even the New York Post defended its erroneous cover, prompting pranksters to apologize for them. No media outlet seemed chastened, though. That is hardly surprising of Glenn Beck or Alex Jones, but even the New York Post defended its erroneous cover, prompting pranksters to apologize for them.
In the end, the FBI did their jobs well and caught the two culprits without any help from the crowdsourced investigation, and everyone accused by Reddit turned out to be innocent. That doesn't mean social media has no use. In the end, the FBI did its job and tracked down the two culprits without help from the crowdsourced investigation, while everyone fingered by Reddit users turned out to have been innocent. But that doesn't mean social media have no contribution to make. And Martin's apology for the mistakes of people he can't control seems a little odd when you consider the glaring lack of an apology from official media outlets.
Martin, in a post befitting an editor of an established publication, writes of the good the users of the site partook in, as well as of the bad: Moderators on Reddit are not paid (nor are they trained), yet here they were apologizing personally to the wrongfully accused for other people's errors. Twitter staff could have apologized for the fake accounts created in the name of the suspect, but they didn't, either. No one bothered to apologize for anything, except for Reddit.
"However, though started with noble intentions, some of the activity on Reddit fueled online witchhunts and dangerous speculation which spiraled into very negative consequences for innocent parties. The Reddit staff and the millions of people on Reddit around the world deeply regret that this happened. We have apologized privately to the family of missing college student Sunil Tripathi, as have various users and moderators. We want to take this opportunity to apologize publicly for the pain they have had to endure. We hope that this painful event will be channeled into something positive and the increased awareness will lead to Sunil's quick and safe return home. We encourage everyone to join and show your support to the Tripathi family and their search." In a phone interview about the apology post, Martin said he wrote it because he "genuinely felt bad about what happened", even though he himself had nothing to do with it. The site has too many users, and moderators can't be everywhere. Protecting the site's public image from users who violate the rules is an almost impossible task.
Martin apologizing for the wrongdoings of people he can't control comes off a little odd when you consider the lack of an apology from actual media outlets. Moderators on Reddit are not paid, nor are they trained, but here they are apologizing personally to the wrongfully accused even though they themselves didn't do anything wrong. As yet, there is no word on whether or not Martin will publicly apologize for the behavior of all the anonymous people angry over what happened to Sunil Tripathi who are currently sending the creator of r/findbostonbombers death threats – which is another violation of community rules.
Official Twitter staff could have apologized for the fake accounts created in the name of the suspect, but didn't, either. No one asked Twitter to apologize either. Hell, Matthew Keys was fired and allegedly let hacktivists deface a former employers website, and he hasn't apologized. No one bothered to apologize for anything, except good guy Reddit. • Editor's note: this article was amended at 2.30pm ET on 24 April
In a phone interview about the apology note, Martin said he wrote it because he "genuinely felt bad about what happened" even though he himself had nothing to do with it. The site has too many users, and moderators can't be everywhere. Protecting the site's PR from users that violate the rules is an almost impossible task.
No word yet on whether or not Martin will publicly apologize for all the anonymous people angry over what happened to Sunil Tripathi who are currently sending the creator of r/findbostonbombers death threats, which is another violation of community rules.