It’s Been Around for 16 Years!

Posted On 2021-09-27

A chicken walked into a public library, marched up to the desk and said, “Book, book, book, book.” So, the librarian handed the bird a book, the chicken accepted it and then left. Ten minutes later, the chicken returned, threw the book on the desk and said, “Book, book, book, book.” Once again the librarian handed the chicken a book, the chicken accepted it, and then left. Ten minutes later, the chicken was back again! It marched up to the librarian, threw the book on the desk, then said, “Book, book, book, book.” The librarian handed the chicken a third book, but this time decided to follow the bird. She watched the chicken hurry down the street and stop at a pond, where there was a frog sitting on a lily pad. The chicken showed the book to the frog, but the frog just shook its head and said, “Read it, read it, read it, read it.”

Yeah yeah, I know, you all knew the joke after reading the first line, or even before.  If you read the whole joke I am simply amazed…but truthfully, this is supposed to be my clever segue into what my post is really about… REDDIT! 

While I don’t feel Reddit has much hype surrounding it, at least in my social circles, it feels to me like the somewhat odd cousin of Facebook.  I did not know much before I made the decision to create an account and learn more about this social media tool.  My oldest son who is 21 has enjoyed Reddit for a few years.  Both of my boys are not Facebook frequents, one likes Instagram, the other does not care, but they both seem to like this social app. I asked my oldest a few questions about Reddit.  These were his thoughts:

“Mom, I like Reddit but there are definitely downsides to it.  It gathers communities of like-minded people, so there is not always room for debate…more echo chambers.  However, there are always exceptions and most dumb stuff gets down-voted so it’s not always like that.  Like in my opinion though, it’s the website/app with the most back and forth debate, and some of the most rational conversations I have followed have been on Reddit. But there are times when I have seen the opposite, but I definitely like it more than Facebook etc… Also there’s evidence that the highest up-voted posts are paid for by businesses and perhaps countries…it’s a very global site, so propaganda can be widespread.  The main feature is people’s anonymity.”

Ok so this is a fair assessment, and I like that it comes from someone who is young and has a few years of familiarity with it. 

When I first signed up, I had to choose 3 topics of interest. There were many topics, each with several subcategories. The first topic I chose was ‘Damn That’s Interesting’, with a subcategory called ‘sfwporn’.  I almost choked on my tea.  Well I had to google this one, but I almost had a coronary thinking what in the world am I doing?!?   After learning sfw means ‘safe for work’, I decided to click on that one and see what in the world happens.  Well I got cool posts like this: 

It is actually pleasant and some of the other posts are amazing.

The other 2 topics of interest I chose were ‘food’ and ‘funny’.  I am currently enjoying several posts in a subcategory called “next f###ing level”.  I can see why they use that particular word:  First to gain people’s attention, and second, because these posts are exactly the next F###ing level.  They are so good!  There are many Tiktok posts on Reddit and if you do send one to a friend they can open it in Chrome or with the Reddit app.  Check out this one – an all boys’ school pays tribute to a retired teacher in true Maori fashion. 

I went down the rabbit hole for a long time this weekend…many amazing posts. If I were to compare this to Facebook, I would have to say that Reddit has so much more to explore and offer in the way of random posts, questions, and comments.  No one knows who you are so I do not see this as a brag board or place to snoop on people.  Reddit to me is an app that provides a plethora of networks or communities that provide people a platform for their interests, hobbies, and passions. Reddit also appears to be managed well, with rules for users to follow, as well as edits and comments by Reddit administrators.

Now, would I recommend this to be used as an educational tool?  Probably not.  I see zero point in introducing an app like this to anyone younger than 16, and even then I would have to brainstorm for eons about how this could be beneficial in any way in a high school setting.

Has anyone used Reddit in high school or for anything other than mindless entertainment?