Reddit Restricts Pro-Trump Forum Because of Threats

The_Donald did not have a clear mechanism to report or de-emphasize content that was inappropriate, and violent content was not being flagged, the administrators said.

Online sites have increasingly been struggling with the mix of politics and sometimes violent rhetoric on their sites in an era of increased polarization. This month, YouTube announced plans to remove thousands of videos and channels that advocate neo-Nazism, white supremacy and other bigoted ideologies.

The problem has even affected sites that are not inherently political. Earlier this week, Ravelry, a popular knitting and crocheting site, banned content in support of President Trump in what it said was a stand against white supremacy.

“We cannot provide a space that is inclusive of all and also allow support for open white supremacy,” the site said in a statement explaining the decision.

On Reddit, quarantines are a middle-ground approach to dealing with communities that engage in discussion or behavior that, while permitted, may be offensive to average users.

Under a quarantine, an alert warns visitors that a subreddit has struggled to address alleged violations of Reddit’s policy.

“Most recently the violations have included threats of violence against police and public officials,” reads the quarantine message presented to users who visit The_Donald.

Users have to agree to click through the warning to see the posts, which no longer appear in the general stream on Reddit, which bills itself as “the front page of the internet.” According to Reddit, it has 330 million monthly users, which makes it the fifth-most visited website. The site claims to have more than 130,000 communities, with an average of 21 billon monthly page views.