Reddit has quarantined r/Russia due to misinformation

r/Russia has been removed from the site due to misinformation, just days after it was created.

Quarantined subreddits don't show up in searches, recommendations, or feeds in which a user hasn't specifically included them Anyone who finds their way to a community that has been placed in a quasar is shown a warning about the content in order to access it.

In the case of r/Russia, the message warns that there is a high volume of information not supported by credible sources.

r/russia now bears a quarantine notice at the top of the subreddit. Credit: Mashable

Russia has a different perspective on the conflict than many online communities have. Over the past few days, the top posts on the subreddit dedicated to Russia have overwhelmingly justified or defended the invasion. This included claims that Ukrainian soldiers are Nazis who are harming people, and calls for Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy to be tried as a war criminal.

There are elements of truth in some posts, such as disturbing reports of Ukrainian soldiers and officials discriminating against non-white refugees, but a larger portion of the invasion-related content has been without basis, mischaracterised or quickly debunked. r/Russia has been added to the list of communities that have been placed in abeyance due to dis- and misinformation issues.

We are clear in our policies that users and moderators can't try to interfere with the conversations or communities on our platform.

In line with these policies, we have removed a moderator for acting in bad faith. The remaining moderators have been connected with us to remind them of our policies. We will take additional steps as needed.

Redditors now have to specifically opt in to see content from r/russia. Credit: Mashable

The removal of custom styles can also be applied. r/Russia used to have a Russian flag and a photograph of Saint Basil's Cathedral in Moscow as its background, but now both are blank.

r/Russia users are making a mockery of the fact that there is an attack on freedom of speech in the issue of misinformation. More than 265,000 people were subscribed to r/Russia.

Protests against Russia's invasion of Ukraine have been held all over the globe, including in Russia. Over 5,000 Russians have been arrested at these protests since the invasion began, making it clear that many don't support their country's actions.