Reddit is full of bots: thread reposted comment by comment, 10 months later

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Overall perception of Reddit’s decline

  • Many see a long, gradual decline in quality, accelerated by the API/third‑party app fight and IPO push.
  • Others argue it’s been “getting worse” since at least the Condé Nast era, with recurring cycles of “Reddit is dying” complaints.
  • Some users say they still find Reddit tolerable or even “awesome” when used carefully.

Bots, reposts, and engagement farming

  • Thread that triggered discussion: entire conversation reposted comment‑by‑comment months later with new accounts.
  • Common pattern described:
    • Fresh or suddenly “awakened” accounts repost old high‑karma posts and top comments verbatim.
    • Accounts later pivot to shilling products, OnlyFans, crypto, resume services, IPTV, etc.
  • Motives suggested: karma farming to sell accounts or “boosting services,” fake engagement for brands or subs, possible astroturfing.

AI, LLMs, and “dead internet”

  • Some see this as part of “dead internet theory” or “prophecy” – a web dominated by synthetic or recycled content.
  • Debate whether examples here are LLM‑generated or simple copy‑paste; many note they don’t read like LLMs.
  • Others report seeing LLM‑ish behavior: generic, adaptive counter‑arguments, rephrased comments that feel off.
  • Concerns that AI‑driven bot swarms will flood discourse, manipulate opinion, and incentivize identity‑verified spaces.

Moderation, spam control, and incentives

  • Killing third‑party API access is blamed for weakening community anti‑spam efforts.
  • Some say Reddit is actively blocking scrapers, but not effectively curbing in‑platform bots.
  • Several argue platforms have weak incentives to fight subtle engagement‑boosting bots; they inflate usage metrics and ad inventory.

Niche vs large subreddits

  • Broad “stadium” subs (news, politics, memes, AITAH, AskReddit) are widely described as toxic, spammy, and heavily botted.
  • Many report that small, topic‑focused subs (games, hobbies, technical domains, sports, etc.) still work well, though mods are strained.
  • Some mods have quit due to spam and poor tools; others close subs or restrict posting.

Alternatives and future of communities

  • Proposed/used alternatives: Discord servers, old‑school forums (phpBB, vBulletin, Discourse), Lemmy, tildes, niche boards.
  • Disagreements: some think small forums are dead and Discord has replaced them; others think self‑hosted forums remain viable and more bot‑resistant.
  • Various ideas floated for “verify personhood” systems (IDs, ISP‑based auth, passports, webs of trust), with strong trade‑off concerns around privacy, accessibility, and abuse.