Reddit In Chaos As Large Sections Of ‘Internet’s Front Page’ Are Shut Down After Key Employee Is Fired

Large sections of Reddit - widely known as the ‘front page of the internet’ - were taken down by moderators on Thursday night in protest at the departure of a key employee.

More than 100 sections known as ‘subreddits’ were on temporary shutdown leaving many Reddit users locked out of the site, which operates like a massive bulletin board. Registered users vote each post up or down affecting what ends up on the front page.

Affected sections include gaming and technology which have been locked with no indication of when they’ll be available again, while some sections have already been reinstated.

Visitors to locked sections of the site are met with messages such as:

“As a statement on the treatment of moderators by Reddit administrators, as well as a lack of communication and proper moderation tools, /r/technology has decided to go private for the time being.”

The lockdown is said to be due to the sudden departure of the person responsible for the site’s famous AMA (Ask Me Anything) section, which hosts Q&A sessions with some of the world’s biggest names, including Barack Obama.

AMA administrator and Reddit Head of Talent Victoria Taylor was unexpectedly let go from her position, causing widespread shock and annoyance among other Reddit moderators.

The San Francisco-based company is valued at $500million but relies on thousands of unpaid volunteers to maintain the communities found in each subreddit.