Here's the problem: this is what the world sees. Common refrains- - Redditors are awful - Reddit admins have no ability to deal with them - Why ban fatpeoplehate but not eleventy-seven more heinous subs - Southern Poverty Law Center's "most hateful place on the Internet" It's an absolute PR debacle that anyone with a pair of binoculars could have seen coming from beyond the orbit of Saturn. Reddit Inc. doesn't give a shit about their users and never have. But this is highly visible to any potential VC firms or business partners, and it is not helping them.
Hey, lmao - ever heard of the argument from authority? That's where someone who knows their shit says something about the shit they know about, and you accept it as a qualified opinion because they know their shit. That's like how nobody gives a shit what you think, but the Southern Poverty Law Center at least gets their conclusions discussed in a civil tone. Put it this way: if you and the SPLC disagree about a subject that the SPLC was specifically mandated to address and study over 40 years ago, you are likely to look like less of an ass if you at least entertain their research, particularly when there's a link in the post you're responding to.
It can't hurt to remember, also, that in an argument of which is the biggest cesspool of humanity, Reddit or 4chan, no matter who anyone decides "wins," both still lose. Reddit doesn't want to be seen as a cesspool. It certainly won't help their PR team one bit to grab another scapegoat, point at it, and start shouting wildly, "Not as bad! Not as bad!"