Why are so many Redditors really mean ?

r/

I just wonder why this is.

Edit: I am not only talking about in general different opinions . It is Especially in advice subs about life, relationships , identity etc . I experience this.

Comments

  1. LambeauLegend29 Avatar

    It can be different reasons depending on the context but I think the main thing is because Reddit is so depersonalized it’s easy to forget the person you’re talking to is human

  2. Forsaken-Form7221 Avatar

    Lack of consequences for their actions.

  3. AcrobaticRoof5721 Avatar

    Because a big majority of people cannot tolerate an opinion that is not theirs. Not enough people are able to think critically and live to be a hater. 😂.

  4. Thin_Vermicelli_1875 Avatar

    Lots of Redditors are social outcasts with very strong opinions and if you have a slightly different opinion then you they can get really mean, I think a lot of it is insecurity.

    Just remember people in real life are not like this. I’ve actually found most people are surprisingly very nice in real life.

  5. MonoBlancoATX Avatar

    Because we’re on the internet.

    There’s nothing unique about Reddit.

    People are jerks to each other sometimes, especially on the internet.

  6. OrdinaryJacket8896 Avatar

    Some of it has to do with getting attention. Good or bad, some people just like attention.

  7. edgarpickle Avatar

    A lot of the reasons mentioned are correct, but I would also mention that a large number of people are very poor communicators, especially written. They may not be trying to be mean, they may just suck at answering questions without sounding like a jerk.

  8. Negative1Positive2 Avatar

    Social media made y’all way too comfortable with disrespecting people and not getting punched in the face for it.” -Mike Tyson

  9. drorezdrorez Avatar

    Because you can’t get bitch slapped through a computer screen. I’m pretty sure the most people that act like idiots on Reddit, would never act this way in real life or in person with someone.

  10. Glittering_Fox_9769 Avatar

    It’s anonymous internet world. No accountability, no consequences. It’s gonna bring out the worst in people.

    I’ve been flamed and reamed out for literal semantic differences in wording or because people don’t have enough reading comprehension skills to understand what I was saying.
    You’d think these people impulsively stab everyone that upsets them irl.

    It’s just internet world.

  11. MarkoMykolaiv Avatar

    I think because of anonymity

  12. ICUP01 Avatar

    Depersonalization.

    The social restraints are off online.

    To me, you’re probably a bot.

  13. sebrebc Avatar

    As others have said, it’s the internet and everybody is anonymous. No consequences.

    It’s been that way since the beginning. Every chat room and message board had it’s share of trolls and “flamers”. 

  14. mrwoot08 Avatar

    I agree with everything that has been mentioned and I’d also say boredom. Humans are inextricably drawn to drama and when some people see a pleasant, educational discussion, they want to stir the pot and make it completely chaotic, all out of boredom and self-satisfaction.

  15. [deleted] Avatar

    Tone is lost in text a lot of the time. People misinterpret questions or comments and feel offended/respond accordingly. Also, the anonymity means people may not be as polite as they would be otherwise. This might mean some harsh truths that would be sugar coated if received elsewhere. It can also just be people trolling.

  16. darkshoxx Avatar

    Most of them are average, only some of them are mean

    badumm tssss

  17. PM_Your_Wiener_Dog Avatar

    I can’t believe you said that

  18. Adept-Passenger605 Avatar

    Ever been on 4chan or 9gag

  19. sku-mar-gop Avatar

    Simply Statistics (mean)

  20. Alarming-Tradition40 Avatar

    Usually when someone resorts to bullying and name-calling, it is because their life sucks so much, they want to bring others down to their level…

  21. Intelligent-Law2648 Avatar

    Nobody can punch you in the mouth on the internet

  22. Top-Cupcake4775 Avatar

    Many of them just want attention but their fucked-up childhoods have taught them that they won’t get attention for doing positive things, so they try to get attention by being mean.

  23. SWMom143 Avatar

    Some of the other parenting apps are worse than what I’ve seen here. I always wondered what someone would say and do if they were having a conversation in-person. Keyboards provide so much safety that people get bold and show who their true colors…if only they weren’t a bunch of pussies in real life!

  24. LovelyHoneybun1 Avatar

    Started using Reddit five years ago and honestly noticed it got worse during the pandemic. People were stressed, isolated, and took it out on internet strangers. Now it’s like some users just forgot how to be decent again.

  25. BrewboyEd Avatar

    Nobody can kick your ass when you’re hiding behind a keyboard…

  26. 1Pip1Der Avatar

    Because, deep down, they’re mean people, and they can use the anonymity to safely drop the mask

  27. Crazy_Veggie6 Avatar

    i recently created a sub with support for people with disorders where they can find a good word, memes, quotes, and loose chatter. when i invited people to join and help us provide help to others then…. lol. i was insulted many times

  28. __Blackrobe__ Avatar

    Haven’t checked your profile, maybe won’t bother, but was it something you said in some other subreddit?

  29. Frosty-Flower-3813 Avatar

    I wish I knew why I get so angry online at things.

  30. Flat-While2521 Avatar

    It costs nothing

  31. _shadysand_ Avatar

    Lots of projection and insecurity, combined with the anonymity and lack of consequences for their actions.

  32. Horror_Pay7895 Avatar

    It tends to be a place for disagreeable people. And it’s anonymous so there’s no consequences for being particularly nasty.

  33. KC5SDY Avatar

    Some people that are miserable in life want others to be just as miserable as they are. They do not want you to be happy. They will not do anything to make themselves happy so, they spread it around.

  34. Zorolord Avatar

    Because they live in Mommies basement.

    Cue the downvotes, lol

  35. LowTimePilot Avatar

    To be fair we’re pretty mean to ourselves too. Many of us don’t take care of our bodies or relationships and we sabotage our dreams and goals.

  36. mothwhimsy Avatar

    Internet anonymity

  37. murderouslady Avatar

    Anonymity makes them feel invincible

  38. UltimateGamingTechie Avatar

    They (we?) have anonymity which results in no consequences for being mean. They could be the nicest person you’d meet IRL but not here.

  39. charlieq46 Avatar

    HOOOO don’t go into instagram/facebook reels comment sections. Those people are the worst. But honestly, anonymity makes people do dumb shit.

  40. InternationalPizza Avatar

    They are too cowardly to say the same thing without anonymity. I was being hard on someone recently – not necessarily mean, but other people abuse the anonymity as an excuse to be unnecessarily mean in a way that doesn’t contribute. I’m going to be quitting Reddit on my non-anonynous account 

  41. Optimus-Slime-69 Avatar

    i would argue this about people irl too

  42. HotLandscape9755 Avatar

    Theyre losers hiding behind a screen trying to come off as superior 

  43. RealisticNecessary50 Avatar

    It’s so easy to be rude to rude or condescending to a stranger online. I catch myself doing it sometimes. You really havev to make an effort to take a step back and consider that there is a human behind the other use name, and there is more going on in their life than you are aware of. Most people online are not going to do that. 

  44. Daedalparacosm3000 Avatar

    The people here are NOWHERE as mean as instagram commenters lol

  45. baumpop Avatar

    I can come across as mean but it’s mostly coming from being indignant to bad faith arguments 

  46. OutlawNagori Avatar

    Because we’re all anonymous on here and can say whatever without fear of social consequences

  47. Kyro_Official_ Avatar

    The same reason a lot of people are mean outside of reddit. A lot of people are just mean people.

  48. BobGnarly_ Avatar

    Keyboard jockeys. They have no consequences for what they comment and the anonymity makes them brave. 

  49. Thelastfirecircle Avatar

    Sometimes being mean is funny

  50. spandexvalet Avatar

    I think it’s like road rage. They can’t see your face. So they are getting angry at txt, not a person. The brain doesn’t “click” there is a person in the car, or behind that txt.

  51. BubiMannKuschelForce Avatar

    Strange. Ive found Reddit to be way less toxic than FB or Twitter.

  52. probablynotreallife Avatar

    We’re not mean! Fuck off!

  53. OhAces Avatar

    A few times when someone has been mean to me on here I take a little peak into their comments. Usually they are on a streak of many negative shitty mean comments in a row. So I respond to their mean comment with one of compassion and ask if they are OK because I see a trend of negativity and maybe something is going on with them. I see it happen to myself when I’m shitty in real life sometimes I’m shitty on here for days in a row. Reaching out to people like that has been met with mixed reactions, sometimes they say thank you, sometimes it just gets more vitriol.

  54. Elegant_Elk5307 Avatar

    I’m a conservative, and the people on here tend to be very liberal, and it’s so discouraging when I ask a political question and get so much hate back even though I ask respectful questions with the intent of learning opinions from the other side because I don’t really know many liberals in real life to have convos with

  55. Wild-End-219 Avatar

    Once you reach a certain amount of Karma, they send you angry juice.

  56. -NyStateOfMind- Avatar

    A lot of redditors don’t have anything going on in their lives, reddit is all they have and all they know. A lot of people on here are insecure, have a fragile ego and have a weak pride. that’s why everybody is always arguing and doubling down when they’re proven wrong. Also this site has a lot of extremist that don’t like their echo chamber being disturbed.

    Stay away from the all or popular because it’s all just extremist on there anyway and stick to subs about things you enjoy.

  57. CommonWishbone Avatar

    Bc we’re all just bozos using the internet

  58. No_Detail9259 Avatar

    Partisan echo chamber cant tolerate dissent.

    Oh good, here come the downotes which proves my point.

  59. Ok-Yak549 Avatar

    low IQ and low testosterone

  60. vaguelydetailed Avatar

    Anonymity/crowd mindset. [Insert username] is easy to think of as not a real person. Obviously, everyone on social media is a real person (I’m ignoring that bots/AI accounts exist, you know what I mean), but without a name and face, it is even easier to dehumanize the person behind a random username and text post. Look how people act on Facebook or Instagram where people often have their names, even full names, and pictures!

    I think social media in general often falls victim to the crowd/us vs them mindset in comments, too. It’s easy to get other people to laugh at mean comments or jokes, especially if the poster is cringey or in the wrong about something (not proud, I’ve liked some of those comments). Then there tends to be a piling on/ganging up against OP effect, when potentially those people might not have said or endorsed a mean thing if they didn’t see a high upvote count. When people’s perspectives shift from “how can I contribute to what OP said/asked” to “how can I make other Redditors laugh/upvote me,” it is easy to forget the person posting is a real life person with feelings. I’m guilty of it, too.

  61. PigDstroyer Avatar

    Never getting laid looks to be soul crushing lol

  62. Unlucky-Pomegranate3 Avatar

    Anonymity breeds contempt. Especially in this hyper-politicized era.

  63. JimVivJr Avatar

    People tend to be mean when nobody holds them accountable for their words and actions.

  64. DueCoach4764 Avatar

    Personally, im mean because so many people lack common sense to yhe point it hurts my head seeing how stupid some people are

  65. Ghostbuster_11Nein Avatar

    KWS, (Keyboard warrior syndrome).

    Point and laugh at them then block them and move on with life.

    Back when you had to be in face punching range to say stupid shit people were a bit more civil… but the toxicity was alway there IMO.

  66. Pfizermyocarditis Avatar

    They’re mad more people didn’t vote for Kamala Harris.

  67. flyingwithgravity Avatar

    Anonymous platform allows for the biggest, most supportive soap box ever

    Like driving, every other driver is a shithead

  68. Apprehensive_Lie_177 Avatar

    Many are really, really nice. Or neutral. It’s easy for us to remember mean things though. 1 mean comment out of 100 is easy to remember, the other 99 are forgettable. 

  69. Dismal-Refrigerator3 Avatar

    umm. do you not know how social media actually works?

  70. Nearby-Water3592 Avatar

    Because they can.

    Keyboard warriors rarely face consequences unless someone is REALLY pissed (and tech savvy) and hunts them down.

    Best advise here is to block and move on. I’ve run into this several times myself, and that’s the only way to handle it. Believe it or not, these people actually WANT you to argue back at them so they can get into a fight with you. Don’t give them the satisfaction of a response. Block and move on.

  71. antisara Avatar

    It is humbling though. Since it’s anonymous I can’t get by on my social credit. I’m astonished on this so platform cus people that know me would never talk to me the way they do here. Hahaha

    Edit: for instance if make a comment on Facebook on a big post like a local newspaper, I might get dog piled but people you know see it and jump in and back you up.

  72. _IratePirate_ Avatar

    It kinda reminds me of the early Internet where it was just everyone trolling each other and even if people were being deadass, we took them as trolls anyway because wtf you gonna do over a computer ?

  73. Waagtod Avatar

    I think the really mean posts are usually the one responding to a response of their post that either demeans or ridiculed their take. Escalating the insults and anger. Been guilty of it myself. We need to be better. Maybe take a second before you hit send and re read it a few times?

  74. tmac960 Avatar

    Democrats. That’s why.

  75. Grip-it-rip-it Avatar

    Reddit is full of angry leftist

  76. AdZealousideal5383 Avatar

    From my experience, redditors are a lot less mean than other social media sites. Redditors are sarcastic and make over the top jokes but nowhere near as hateful as Twitter or the comments sections on Facebook political posts.

  77. Electronic_Stop_9493 Avatar

    Because the community self selects for angry nerds

  78. Ill-Woodpecker1857 Avatar

    Lack of Pussy, Friends, and Grass.

  79. Intrepid_Doubt_6602 Avatar

    I think it’s partially because we view negative encounters more strongly than positive ones.

    Most conversations I’ve had on Reddit are polite but I definitely remember the rude ones.

  80. Timely_Rest_503 Avatar

    Because they’re too gutless to be like that in real life

  81. ArmIndependent6567 Avatar

    Cause they’re cowards who can hide behind a keyboard. But it’s ok, if they’re really bad it usually means their life is miserable.

  82. dancars18 Avatar

    I feel the same, many popular subreddits tend to become echo chambers. The upvote/downvote system just naturally leads to this, but I think it got worse after the post/comment karma system got changed a few years ago to make rising posts even more prominent and popular.

    Reddit’s format is not even the worst among social media platforms for trying to have discussions, but people tend to read headlines and not read linked articles. Popular opinions take hold quickly, and disagreeing with someone can turn mean as your reply gets downvoted and hidden.

  83. billthedog0082 Avatar

    Because they can.

  84. rdldr1 Avatar

    You don’t know me!!!

  85. OldBat001 Avatar

    Maybe they’re inflamed by the equal number of really dumb comments on Reddit. (Not yours — just in general.)

    Today seems to have an influx of really inane comments on various subs.

  86. DefiantContext3742 Avatar

    I’ve only had my account for like two seconds but I’ve noticed people are ready to throw hands at any opportunity. Like people will clown on you if you even so much as slightly disagree with you. You could read something like “oranges are red” and I’d say something like “oh maybe that’s just a dark orange I don’t think they come red” and in one approximate minute you’d get something like “I don’t give a flying shit what color it is it’s clearly red in this picture I can’t believe people are downvoting this and being so negative” and it’s like bro it’s 9 am Jesus Christ

  87. isthatabingo Avatar

    Honestly because life sucks and I can’t say how I’m really feeling to individuals IRL. Online, I can let out anger that I can’t otherwise. I work with a lot of dumb people in my job, and I have to be nice to them anyways. Online? I can just say someone is dumb. And a lot of people are dumb.

  88. Lovinthesea3 Avatar

    I find Redditors the nicest of all social media apps, I’m sorry you find trouble. I personally think Redditors are more intelligent, friendly and share insight w/o judgement most of the time. Reddit is my favorite. People do have strong opinions.

  89. Poverty_welder Avatar

    Because once you click away from the thread the person on the other stops being real

  90. Cymirian Avatar

    Because they’re humans, and humans can’t help but be insufferable sometimes

  91. Sense_Difficult Avatar

    Lots of good replies here. I would add that it’s not that people are MEAN but that they are blunt. People are used to fake niceness on social media. And they are used to people being fake nice to be polite. And cancel culture has made people parse what they say very carefully.

    I think when people are constantly expected to careful and polite, two things happen. One is that if you tell the truth without sugar coating it, you sound like a mean person. The other thing is that once someone finds a place where there are no repercussions for being blunt, they get a little slap happy with it.

  92. Adenfall Avatar

    You are in the wrong subreddits.

  93. Competitive_Gear2339 Avatar

    It’s the anonymity.

    Ppl feel like they can say whatever they want bc there’s absolutely no way to trace it back to a real person, and face consequences

  94. New_Bluebird_7083 Avatar

    Because so many are leftists and leftists tend to be keyboard warriors.

  95. bigpapichulo_ Avatar

    You ask an open question to the ENTIRE INTERNET! Ask and you shall receive. For better or for worse. Good day.

  96. Watts7474 Avatar

    oh goodness- it’s not you. it’s pack mentality. no consequences and as soon as someone else downvotes then it’s like an avalanche of rude, mean, awful stuff.

    this i find true for almost all social media.

    not a big fan of mike tyson, but as he said quite wisely:

    “Social media made y’all way too comfortable with disrespecting people and not getting punched in the face for it.”

    word.

    it hurts- for me anyway- but i just got off almost all socmedia.

    even a mushroom hunting and zen threads on here has awful mean responses lol!

    🙁😕

  97. streetmagix Avatar

    Depends where and why. I try and be friendly and helpful on here on subreddits that are related to my interests. Everyone has to start somewhere right with a hobby or interest right? But there are some who just fail to use google for basic questions, or get annoyed at me personally for not giving the answer they were hoping for.

    Often I do let it go, but sometimes I can be pretty rude with those people. I don’t have to be on here, I don’t have to try and help people.

  98. Work_Related68 Avatar

    Because Reddit is anonymous and majority liberal. Anyone that goes against their opinions and worldviews is instantly crucified.

  99. tedshreddon Avatar

    Online anonymity. They would never say these things to your face in public.

  100. ofthenightfall Avatar

    Give someone a mask and they will show you their true self

  101. NomaDrvi Avatar

    Because people are mean. If you are mean in real life you can get punched so most people hide it. There is no need to hide it on internet so people are being themselves. No uniqueness to reddit or any other social media.

  102. Remarkable-Clerk9554 Avatar

    I think people are just mean on the Internet in general. It’s a lot easier to practice mean spiritedness when you are hiding behind a screen and will not be held accountable for it.

  103. Lazer_Kellinski Avatar

    Is mean really a Reddit trait? I’d bet it’s more of a human thing. There are probably mean people on Twitter Facebook Instagram etc…

  104. Purrrity_cookie Avatar

    Easy to be an asshole when no one knows who/where you are.

  105. Ac3Nigthmare Avatar

    Internet anonymity does weird things to our brains.

  106. Professional_Mood823 Avatar

    Anonymity and lack of consequences. It isn’t just Reddit most of the internet is like this.

  107. Unhappy_Knee264 Avatar

    Anonymity turns humans into monsters

  108. Hobobasket Avatar

    Because people tend to say what they really mean on the internet and they’re anonymous…

  109. Brief-Chemistry-6514 Avatar

    Most of them are severely unhappy

  110. warmbeer_ik Avatar

    It’s easier to be a prick when you’re not being a prick to someone’s face. 

  111. StockConcentrate6496 Avatar

    Lefties with blue hair, still living with mum.

  112. ReflectionLess5230 Avatar

    Because we’re hidden behind the veil of anonymity

  113. Naive_Flatworm_6847 Avatar

    Anonymity is one hell of a drug

  114. implodemode Avatar

    People are.scared and angry. Reddit skews young so there’s a dearth of maturity and common sense but lots of entitlement and bravado. Anonymity giveth and it taketh away.

    Don’t take ANYTHING personal here. If they strike a nerve, remember they don’t know you at all and made.a lucky shot. If there’s a nerve, take note – it might be an aspect of yourself you sincerely need to work on. But otherwise, fuck em.

    We all.make a shitload of assumptions about everyone and read a lot into.a.few.lines. I know I do it. We convey a lot by what and how we communicate but we dont all.interpret correctly. I have a lot of epiphanies here. I write a LOT of replies that I delete after having a realization and the one I have most is: they don’t care. They won’t even read this, or they will twist it to mean something else.. But I take that knowledge for the win. I don’t throw pearls to swine.

    Just because someone says something, it doesn’t make it true.
    If it istrue, it isn’t necessarily bad.
    If it’s bad, then we need to accept that and examine ourselves and try to be better.

  115. Enigma_xplorer Avatar

    I think there’s two ways to interpret this. While there are many reasons for it a few things come to mind.

    I think part of it is you are seeing an unbridled honesty most people are not used to hearing and this comes off as “mean”. These are the thoughts people have but typically tone down or outright refuse to speak with people they know or are dealing with in person and may react negatively. These people aren’t being mean just like self censoring is not kindness that’s just your perception of it.

    Part of it is some people are actually just jerks and have have a range of toxic personalities traits. Again in many cases these are toned down in person but the anonymity of the internet allows them to fully embrace their worst selves. You also need to remember these are also the people who tend to speak the loudest unfortunately.

    Maybe it is even deserved. If you post bragging about scamming the elderly yeah people are going to be mean to you and have every justification for it. Just because they are mean doesn’t mean they are wrong.

  116. Hackpro69 Avatar

    I would have wooped ass on a few of these corksoakers if they would have said these comments to my face.

  117. Shmoogis Avatar

    It’s terrifying to comment. Don’t know why but they meanest

  118. Final_Boss_Jr Avatar

    The Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory.