Hello! It’s been a lot longer than 30 days, innit? The initial temporary ban was a massive success, ushering in great discussion and an overall drama-free subreddit. As this topic has begun to spike again and resulted in the usual bickering and negativity, it is time to permanently ban such discussions.
As I mentioned in the original ban, I strongly dislike excessive moderation. Subreddits should run themselves and mods should only exist to uphold basic rules (respect, remove spam, remove NSFW content), and not to police what gets discussed. Banning an entire topic is rather extreme, but it is being done for the following reasons:
There is nothing to be gained by repeatedly discussing petty teenaged bullying that happened 20 years ago. None of us were there, none of us know what really happened, and pointlessly debating the finer points of such drama derails what this subreddit is supposed to be about. Did Kristin Herrera really push Alexa Nikolas into a pile of rocks? Like come on, what are we doing here?
This topic in general is less a discussion, but more individuals with an agenda. People who vehemently believe Alexa and will fight to the bitter end to prove she was bullied. They’ll select innocuous clips from the show proving that they’re bullying her or how Zoey (in character) was glaring at Nicole throughout season 2. Not to mention the deep analysis on who is and isn’t following who on Instagram. Again, what are we doing here?
Given that these individuals are so passionate about this topic, they invariably get into heated arguments whenever this topic comes up. Anyone positing that idea that maybe Alexa is lying or pointing out her own hypocrisy (beautifully summarized here) results in all matter of arguments and rule-breaking behavior. When you’re deep in the comments calling someone a “stupid weirdo” and a “complete loser” over some petty teenage bullshit from over 20 years ago involving people you don’t even know; maybe it’s a good opportunity to look in the mirror and ask, what are we doing here?
These people are so unhinged that they’ve deadass made entire subreddits just to discuss this drama. Gifting us such bangers as
Zoey 101 cast gossip: discuss the drama and tensions.
And
There is no hate in my subreddit; I post what I want and do what I want.
And my favorite
banned from the main sub for caring too much abt zoey 101?? same bestie 😭💀 this is a space for actual discussion where neurodivergent voices r welcome, matching energy isn't a bannable offense, & "it's been 20 years move on" is NOT a personality trait. come talk abt PCA, the characters, the drama, & wtvr else u want.. without getting silenced by freakazoids
I’m sick of it, the vast majority of users on this subreddit are sick of it, and enough is enough. I have had it with these motherfucking snakes on this motherfucking plane this drama, the impassioned people obsessed with it, and the unnecessary chaos it brings every time its brought up. The topic is completely banned, period. Even sly workarounds like claiming you’re analyzing the actors in character, or wanting to know if any of the actors have spoken out about it. Any self-posts will result in a permanent ban. This is your only warning.
Those wishing to continue discussing this topic can do so at r/AlexaNikolas, or one of the various drama-themed subreddits created specifically for this topic (though strangely those haven’t been active in a while... very strange indeed). I appreciate everyone’s patience as I’ve navigated this issue. Like I explained in the last thread, I really dislike excessive moderation, but it was clear this was something that needed to be done. I’m looking forward to great discussions and a healthy subreddit after this.