Reddit Launches New Block Tools To Help Temper Harassment (mashable.com)

An anonymous reader writes: Reddit users can now use the new "block user" feature to better deal with harassment. The new feature was announced Wednesday and while the site has had [a "block user"] feature for quite some time now, the new tool allows users to block other users from replies and comments in addition to private messages, which was what the old tool was limited to previously. If users click the "Block User" button when viewing a reply in their inbox, it will remove replies, comments, messages and posts from that user from your view. Admins will however still see all the messages and replies, and if you're a moderator, you can still see content from users who are blocked on the subreddits you moderate.

Comments

Decline Is Imminent

[Anonymous Coward]

Nothing exemplifies an online community approaching the event horizon like implementation of blocking and filter tools to be used against the community members.

The so-called harassment that this will be used to block will simply silence the community or largely clueless, inexperienced, wannabe SJW. I guarantee you that it will quickly spiral into a bunch of dingbats talking to themselves, as everyone else will be blocked. At that point, the community ceases to exist and the site is of no interest.

This tool marks the beginning of Reddit's slide back into obscurity. I wonder what the next "big thing" site will be?

Re:Good

[110010001000]

I'm not adding you to my hugcircle!

When dissention is harassment

[Anonymous Coward]

Hey, I'm all for stopping assholes from being assholes, and if you think hiding from it is protection, then go for it. I don't really have a better solution.

But there's a similar problem I have with the greater Twitter population, where I feel the block feature can be abused and anyone with a dissenting opinion is harassing you. You become judge, jury, and executioner of their ability to participate in the conversation at all. Opposing views are eliminated and tweet chains become a support group. It's probably less of an issue for Reddit given the different format, but since discussion actually happens there I'd hate to see it die because you're an anti-Skub Republican and I'm a pro-Skub Democrat.

I do like that it's a "hide it from me" solution instead of a "you can't post here" deal. I'd like to go one step further and be able to tell who in the thread is blocking someone else; let me see who is blocking for rape threats and trolling, and who is blocking all the Trump supporters. Actually I'd love that for Twitter even more; you block me, you don't see my replies, I don't know I'm blocked, everyone else can see it.

Re:Good

[AmiMoJo]

You know, you can use the Slashdot friend/foe system to do something similar. Just mark someone as your foe, set foes to -6 here and you won't even see them unless you browse at -1.

It's a pretty basic feature for discussion forums. Personally I don't use it though. Imagine if someone doxed you but you had them on the ignore list, you wouldn't even know it happened. I'd prefer to know so I can do something about it.

Re:Typical Response from Mental Midgets

[Jason Levine]

It's possible to hold dissenting opinions and to discuss any topic without being offensive. It's possible to have a conversation that remains civil, regardless of the positions held. I know this is true, I do it nearly every single day. In fact, you might say that my current post is contrarian. I have held meaningful, civil, discussions - even debates, with all sorts of people. Some of those people were the least favored folks on the planet. Some of them have held beliefs that are truly ignorant but the conversations remained civil throughout.

Exactly. The block feature wouldn't be for "I disagree with you and here are my reasons why." It would be for "you're an idiot if you believe X and just to reinforce this I'll track down every post of yours and make and insulting reply." There's a small, but vocal, group in pretty much any forum who thinks that the way to win an argument is to make threats and insults until the other side is driven out of the forum. Then they win. The best tactic against these people is to ignore them. This tool simply makes ignoring them easier.