I've said it before and I'll say it again. Reddit has completely lost its integrity and has achieved tabloid status with me and almost everyone I know. In casual discussion among friends, family and even coworkers, I've discovered that a majority of us surf Reddit for its niche content and satire/humor. Anyone that pays any attention at all to the news or political content is quick to point out the obvious bias and knows that those sectors are infested with extremists, shills and indoctrinated mindless drones. Reddit has become nothing more than the comic section of the newspapers of yesterday. Sadly even a lot of the niche subs have fallen victim to the extreme bias. Reddit use is declining but is being reported as gaining popularity recently. I read an article in a tech magazine that showed several instances of bot padding to create an illusion of popularity. I'd cite the source but there are so many that it rather pointless and a simple search turns up a plethora. Reddit is nowhere near as popular as it has been reported and its a huge relief to know that.

The same thing has happened to r/politics r/worldnews and many others. Most of the people I know who live in the real world don't go beyond the humor parts of reddit so I'm actually glad the apparent trends on Reddit are merely a facade.

Wow I had no idea the roots of these hiveminds organized on IRC (which is a cesspool in and of itself) and discord. Thank you for the insight. I too have had the same experiences with massive down votes, and dogpile comments which pop up in obscure subs and are exactly as you describe, low post history etc. I've achieved a moderate amount of karma over the 4 years I've been on Reddit, with the same account. Most of which has derived from niche' subs and a couple of epic posts I've made. You're absolutely right about karma gods not fitting in elsewhere.

Reddit is a cesspool of vote bots and shills. It's no different from mainstream media and has completely lost its integrity. I use reddit solely for humor and entertainment. I pay absolutely no attention to news or politics and the hive mind BS that has ruined the venue.

Some of which were funded by our tax dollars. Check out the "Lean Forward" campaign they ran prior to and during Obama reelection. That's right, our tax dollars were used to proliferate a left wing agenda.