Reddit tells communities threatening Elon Musk and DOGE workers to cool down

Reddit has seen an increase in rule-breaking posts across “several communities,” and it has issued a temporary ban on one that featured users calling for violence against people who work for the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). That community, r/WhitePeopleTwitter, was given a 72-hour ban on Tuesday, as reported by Engadget. Screenshots shared on X show multiple examples of the threatening posts. Musk later reposted the screenshots, claiming that the users have “broken the law.” In a note on the subreddit, Reddit says it was banned “due to a prevalence of violent content” and that “inciting and glorifying violence or doxing” violate Reddit’s rules. An unnamed Reddit admin said the ban was meant to be a “cooling-off period” for the community. Reddit also gave a full ban to a subreddit called r/IsElonDeadYet for violating rules “against posting violent content.” The unnamed admin said Reddit is taking steps “to ensure all communities can provide a safe environment for healthy conversation” in a post on r/RedditSafety. “Reddit communities are places for civil discussion and are one of the few places online where people can exchange ideas and perspectives,” the Reddit admin account wrote. “We want to ensure that they continue to be a place for healthy debate no matter the topic. Debate and dissent are welcome on Reddit—threats and doxing are not.” When Reddit identifies communities “experiencing an increase in rule-violating content,” the company says it will reach out to moderators, add a popup to the subreddit reminding users of Reddit’s rules, and issue 72-hour bans when needed. Last month, many subreddits banned posting links to Elon Musk-owned X. In that case, Reddit said communities were free to implement the rules.