Quebec content creators denounce the culture of harassment that is rife on the Reddit platform, where anonymity allows certain Internet users to launch insults with impunity.
At the beginning of September, Audrée Larocque launched a cry from the heart on the Instagram page of her company Alarocque. The owner of an accessories and clothing company was fed up with the relentlessness and personal attacks she was receiving from users on the Reddit platform.
“I am insulted and laughed at every week on Reddit… A year ago, I thought about suicide following messages and insults about me and my company. We still laugh about my miscarriages, how mean you are,” the young woman said in a short-lived publication.
“People laughed at me, or said it wasn’t true […] It hurts,” she explains today.
On Reddit, the majority of users use a pseudonym with which they comment in different thematic forums, called “subreddits”. Each subgroup is moderated by a volunteer user who defines the rules of his community. Users can create multiple accounts with different nicknames if they wish.
His targeted family
Joanie Landry was also targeted by anonymous insults on Reddit. The content creator behind the “La famille Landry” account on TikTok received numerous derogatory comments attacking her family.
“When I heard about Reddit, at first, I heard that certain influencers with many more subscribers than me were receiving harassment, even death threats, finally 6 months ago I was entitled to my first publication on Reddit,” explains the mother, followed by more than 96,000 Internet users on TikTok.
Possible sanctions
Despite the anonymity offered by the platform, the Éducaloi organization warns Reddit users and Internet users in general: comments considered as harassment, threats or defamation can result in legal consequences.
“The police have the technological means to find people who commit crimes using social networks like Reddit,” adds Me Chanel Alepin, who knows the online world well by being very active on TikTok.
Freedom of expression still remains a right on Reddit and users can express their opinions, even if they are unpleasant. “We must not forget that people also have the right to be unpleasant,” explains Me Alepin.
For lawyer Anne-Marie Dassylva, who specializes in managing content creators, Reddit represents an interesting playing field for influencers, despite the anonymity of its users.
“I think that sometimes there are comments that can be constructive,” she emphasizes. I think we need to look at them with a different eye, to sleep on that.”
