[pixl97]

This is a common failure mode that's seen in some reddit subs.

In reddit, the moderators of that sub get a particular idea of how their sub should look, which oddly enough includes the idea that what they do is always right. Any sub that can have physical products backing it, such as makeup, will commonly fall in this trap.

Mods: "You cannot promote products here... (unless you're one of my friends or giving me kickbacks".

Now with Reddit, you have a very large usebase to keep the sub alive. But small sites will commonly strangle themselves by doing this.

[lormayna]

This resembles exactly the description of moderation in /r/italy. There are more people banned from there than people subscribing this subreddit.

[undersuit]

WTH happened in November 2021 to kill that sub?

[eszed]

Just Googling and guessing:

Maybe, "Italy Announces New Restrictions For the Unvaccinated"?

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/24/world/europe/italy-vaccin...

Or, right-wing stuff about immigration?

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/nov/25/matteo-salvini...

Those are hot-buttons that have ruined other communities, so whatever the specifics for that sub, my guess is Political Controversy. Anyone on here know anything for sure?

[lormayna]

I don't think those are the specific topics that ruined this subreddit. The moderators killed this subreddit: if you express a slightly different opinion than liberal left wing, you will be banned for being "not welcoming and create a bad mood". And you will be banned also to express any polite kind of criticism to all the minorities, except one: the catholics. For them, every insults is accepted.

[GaggiX]

I'm on this subreddit, but it doesn't really seem dead to me, where does "November 2021" come from?

[nvm0n2]

Posts per day flatlined that month after being sustained at ~50 per day for years:

https://subredditstats.com/r/italy

... implying that the sub was destroyed by its moderators.

[lormayna]

The moderators of this sub are a bunch of fascists. Everyone that express an opinion that they don't like is banned. And this is the result

[GaggiX]

Interesting, I couldn't really see any difference to before.

[undersuit]

>you have a very large usebase to keep the sub alive.

I don't know about that. You have a large userbase of upvoters sure, but commenter were declining in quantity long before the June API changes on a number of subs that were more discussion based than meme or article upvotes.

https://subredditstats.com/r/conspiracy Conspiracy is a good example of a discussion sub, no comment on the actual discussions, driven by upvotes and were did all the commenters go before June's API disruption while the subscribers kept climbing?

[Loughla]

Like the other poster said. Conspiracy is less about the api and more (waaaaaaayyyyy more) about fringe politics becoming mainstream. It was one of the first subs to rot during the 2016 and then died during the 2020 American presidential elections.

[pixl97]

What happened with conspiracy has a lot more to do with politics.

[undersuit]

Well then where did all the politicers go? https://subredditstats.com/r/politics has a similar Subscribers to Commenters ratio decline that Conspiracy had.