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r/IAmA

April 12, 2024

For other uses, see IAMA.

r/IAmA is a subreddit for question-and-answer interactive interviews termed "AMA" (short for "Ask Me Anything"). AMA interviewees have ranged from various celebrities to everyday people in several lines of work. Founded in May 2009, the subreddit has gone on to become one of Reddit's most popular communities.

r/IAmA
Subreddit logo
Type of site
Subreddit
Available inEnglish
URLr/IAmA
Users22.5 million members
LaunchedMay 27, 2009; 14 years ago (2009-05-27)

Concept edit

IAmA is based on posting "AMAs" (for "Ask Me Anything"), or similarly "AMAAs" (Ask Me Almost/Absolutely Anything) – prompts for others to ask questions about any topic. AMAs are open to all Reddit users, but interviewees require proof that they are who/what they claim to be. They use the site's comment system for both questions and answers; this process has been equated to an online press conference.[1] Like the rest of Reddit, users can also upvote and downvote potential candidates, with the most favoured being more likely to receive an answer.

History edit

According to The Atlantic, this concept is new to the digital age. They deemed the closest equivalents to be game shows, and radio call-in shows, which placed a heavy focus on the interviewees.[1] Contrastingly, r/IAmA places more emphasis on users answering the questions.

The concept's genesis on the internet began in the 1990s; Slashdot launched similar interviews in 1999, but only 10 questions per person were allowed. Participants included free software advocate Bruce Perens and Linux developer Alan Cox. This was followed by Something Awful's Ask/Tell forums, which was more focused on interviews with everyday people.

Reddit built on this idea with video interviews with site staff Alexis Ohanian and Erik Martin. The following demand for AMAs led to the creation of the current r/IAmA subreddit in May 2009. Unlike its precursors, it requires proof of identity. Since its founding, similar features have appeared in other social media sites, like Tumblr and Ask.fm.[1]

Participants edit

Initially, AMAs focused more on ordinary citizens; these interviews still make up some of the subreddit's content today.[1] As Reddit expanded, its staff attempted to bring in celebrity guests—early examples include businesswoman Caterina Fake. Since then, a number of individuals have been interviewed in the IAmA subreddit, some of whom have appeared multiple times. Notable participants include then-United States President Barack Obama (while campaigning for the 2012 election),[2] Bill Gates (multiple times),[3] Bernie Sanders (amidst the 2018 midterm elections),[4] and Holocaust survivor Alex Hershaft.[5] Other people, including Donald Trump, have conducted AMAs in a similar fashion on other parts of Reddit.[6]

The increased traffic for Obama's AMA brought down many parts of the website when it occurred on August 29, 2012.[7]

Celebrities participating in AMAs have seen both positive and negative responses. In 2012, Woody Harrelson's AMA was criticized after Harrelson declined to answer questions that were unrelated to the movie he was then promoting, apparently unaware of the AMA's purpose.[8][9] By contrast, rapper Snoop Dogg's 2012 AMA attracted 1.6 million page views[10] after he provided several candid responses to the community's questions.[11]

Controversies edit

See also: Reddit § 2015

From 2013 to 2015, Victoria Taylor assisted Reddit's volunteer community in presenting interviews.[12][13] She primarily transcribed spoken celebrity responses, but also helped organize timing, affirmed best practices, and assisted in preparation.[14] On July 2, 2015, hundreds of subreddits, including several with over a million subscribers, were set to private by their respective volunteer moderators after Taylor was dismissed.[15][16][17] These moderators stated that a primary factor for the shutdown was a lack of warning for Reddit's decision; Reddit provided no immediate replacement for Taylor's services. Sources closer to Reddit users cited an increased focus on commercializing AMAs as the most likely reason.[14]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d Madrigal, Alexis C. (January 7, 2014). "'Ask Me Anything': How a Weird Internet Thing Became a New Form of Media". The Atlantic. from the original on January 7, 2014. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
  2. ^ "President Obama makes online appearance on Reddit". The Telegraph. London. August 29, 2012. from the original on August 29, 2012. Retrieved August 30, 2012.
  3. ^ Michelle Castillo (27 February 2017). "Bill Gates is 'concerned' about U.S. influence overseas and political divide online". CNBC. from the original on 3 April 2019. Retrieved 9 December 2017. Gates participated in an "ask me anything" feature on Reddit that allows notable people to answer questions from users. This is the fifth time Gates has participated.
  4. ^ "Bernie Sanders' book promotion backfires in Reddit AMA". Burlington Free Press. from the original on 2 April 2023. Retrieved 5 December 2018.
  5. ^ "r/IAmA – I am an 80-year-old Holocaust survivor who co-founded the US Animal Rights movement. AMA". reddit. from the original on 2020-05-31. Retrieved 2019-11-05.
  6. ^ Scott Bixby (28 July 2016). "From the media to moon landings: Trump takes questions in Reddit AMA". The Guardian. from the original on 11 May 2017. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  7. ^ Alabaster, Jay (August 29, 2012). "Obama makes appearance on Reddit, briefly crashes site". IDG News Service. from the original on September 1, 2012. Retrieved August 30, 2012.
  8. ^ Huff, Steve (February 4, 2012). "Woody Harrelson and the No-Good, Very Bad Reddit AMA". The Observer. from the original on May 25, 2013. Retrieved May 31, 2013.
  9. ^ Ohlheiser, Abby (November 13, 2015). "When a celebrity's 'Ask me Anything' on Reddit goes wrong". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on August 8, 2019. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
  10. ^ Hernandez, Brian Anthony (December 11, 2012). "Snoop's Reddit AMA Is 2nd Biggest, Behind Only Obama's". Mashable. from the original on April 11, 2024. Retrieved May 31, 2013.
  11. ^ Simpson, Connor (December 5, 2012). . Atlantic Wire. Archived from the original on June 3, 2013. Retrieved May 31, 2013.
  12. ^ Horgan, Richard (July 3, 2013). "Meet Reddit's New Director of Communications". adweek.com. Prometheus Global Media. from the original on July 4, 2015. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
  13. ^ Fenn, Mike (June 24, 2013). "Reddit's newest employee used to type celebrities' AMA responses". dailydot.com. from the original on July 3, 2015. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
  14. ^ a b Holiday, Ryan (July 6, 2015). "I'll Miss Working With reddit's Victoria Taylor". The Observer. from the original on July 7, 2015. Retrieved July 12, 2015.
  15. ^ McCormick, Rich (3 July 2015). "Huge chunks of Reddit are locked after AMA coordinator fired". from the original on 3 July 2015. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
  16. ^ Hern, Alex (3 July 2015). "Reddit revolts: subforums shut down in protest over AMA co-ordinator sacking". the Guardian. from the original on 3 July 2015. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
  17. ^ "Reddit in uproar after staff sacking". BBC News. July 3, 2015. from the original on July 3, 2015. Retrieved July 3, 2015.

Further reading edit

External links edit

  • Official website

April 12, 2024
iama, other, uses, iama, subreddit, question, answer, interactive, interviews, termed, short, anything, interviewees, have, ranged, from, various, celebrities, everyday, people, several, lines, work, founded, 2009, subreddit, gone, become, reddit, most, popula. For other uses see IAMA r IAmA is a subreddit for question and answer interactive interviews termed AMA short for Ask Me Anything AMA interviewees have ranged from various celebrities to everyday people in several lines of work Founded in May 2009 the subreddit has gone on to become one of Reddit s most popular communities r IAmASubreddit logoType of siteSubredditAvailable inEnglishURLr IAmAUsers22 5 million membersLaunchedMay 27 2009 14 years ago 2009 05 27 Contents 1 Concept 1 1 History 2 Participants 3 Controversies 4 References 5 Further reading 6 External linksConcept editIAmA is based on posting AMAs for Ask Me Anything or similarly AMAAs Ask Me Almost Absolutely Anything prompts for others to ask questions about any topic AMAs are open to all Reddit users but interviewees require proof that they are who what they claim to be They use the site s comment system for both questions and answers this process has been equated to an online press conference 1 Like the rest of Reddit users can also upvote and downvote potential candidates with the most favoured being more likely to receive an answer History edit According to The Atlantic this concept is new to the digital age They deemed the closest equivalents to be game shows and radio call in shows which placed a heavy focus on the interviewees 1 Contrastingly r IAmA places more emphasis on users answering the questions The concept s genesis on the internet began in the 1990s Slashdot launched similar interviews in 1999 but only 10 questions per person were allowed Participants included free software advocate Bruce Perens and Linux developer Alan Cox This was followed by Something Awful s Ask Tell forums which was more focused on interviews with everyday people Reddit built on this idea with video interviews with site staff Alexis Ohanian and Erik Martin The following demand for AMAs led to the creation of the current r IAmA subreddit in May 2009 Unlike its precursors it requires proof of identity Since its founding similar features have appeared in other social media sites like Tumblr and Ask fm 1 Participants editInitially AMAs focused more on ordinary citizens these interviews still make up some of the subreddit s content today 1 As Reddit expanded its staff attempted to bring in celebrity guests early examples include businesswoman Caterina Fake Since then a number of individuals have been interviewed in the IAmA subreddit some of whom have appeared multiple times Notable participants include then United States President Barack Obama while campaigning for the 2012 election 2 Bill Gates multiple times 3 Bernie Sanders amidst the 2018 midterm elections 4 and Holocaust survivor Alex Hershaft 5 Other people including Donald Trump have conducted AMAs in a similar fashion on other parts of Reddit 6 The increased traffic for Obama s AMA brought down many parts of the website when it occurred on August 29 2012 7 Celebrities participating in AMAs have seen both positive and negative responses In 2012 Woody Harrelson s AMA was criticized after Harrelson declined to answer questions that were unrelated to the movie he was then promoting apparently unaware of the AMA s purpose 8 9 By contrast rapper Snoop Dogg s 2012 AMA attracted 1 6 million page views 10 after he provided several candid responses to the community s questions 11 Controversies editSee also Reddit 2015 From 2013 to 2015 Victoria Taylor assisted Reddit s volunteer community in presenting interviews 12 13 She primarily transcribed spoken celebrity responses but also helped organize timing affirmed best practices and assisted in preparation 14 On July 2 2015 hundreds of subreddits including several with over a million subscribers were set to private by their respective volunteer moderators after Taylor was dismissed 15 16 17 These moderators stated that a primary factor for the shutdown was a lack of warning for Reddit s decision Reddit provided no immediate replacement for Taylor s services Sources closer to Reddit users cited an increased focus on commercializing AMAs as the most likely reason 14 References edit a b c d Madrigal Alexis C January 7 2014 Ask Me Anything How a Weird Internet Thing Became a New Form of Media The Atlantic Archived from the original on January 7 2014 Retrieved January 7 2014 President Obama makes online appearance on Reddit The Telegraph London August 29 2012 Archived from the original on August 29 2012 Retrieved August 30 2012 Michelle Castillo 27 February 2017 Bill Gates is concerned about U S influence overseas and political divide online CNBC Archived from the original on 3 April 2019 Retrieved 9 December 2017 Gates participated in an ask me anything feature on Reddit that allows notable people to answer questions from users This is the fifth time Gates has participated Bernie Sanders book promotion backfires in Reddit AMA Burlington Free Press Archived from the original on 2 April 2023 Retrieved 5 December 2018 r IAmA I am an 80 year old Holocaust survivor who co founded the US Animal Rights movement AMA reddit Archived from the original on 2020 05 31 Retrieved 2019 11 05 Scott Bixby 28 July 2016 From the media to moon landings Trump takes questions in Reddit AMA The Guardian Archived from the original on 11 May 2017 Retrieved 9 December 2017 Alabaster Jay August 29 2012 Obama makes appearance on Reddit briefly crashes site IDG News Service Archived from the original on September 1 2012 Retrieved August 30 2012 Huff Steve February 4 2012 Woody Harrelson and the No Good Very Bad Reddit AMA The Observer Archived from the original on May 25 2013 Retrieved May 31 2013 Ohlheiser Abby November 13 2015 When a celebrity s Ask me Anything on Reddit goes wrong The Washington Post Archived from the original on August 8 2019 Retrieved November 14 2019 Hernandez Brian Anthony December 11 2012 Snoop s Reddit AMA Is 2nd Biggest Behind Only Obama s Mashable Archived from the original on April 11 2024 Retrieved May 31 2013 Simpson Connor December 5 2012 How High Was Snoop Dogg During His Reddit AMA Atlantic Wire Archived from the original on June 3 2013 Retrieved May 31 2013 Horgan Richard July 3 2013 Meet Reddit s New Director of Communications adweek com Prometheus Global Media Archived from the original on July 4 2015 Retrieved July 3 2015 Fenn Mike June 24 2013 Reddit s newest employee used to type celebrities AMA responses dailydot com Archived from the original on July 3 2015 Retrieved July 3 2015 a b Holiday Ryan July 6 2015 I ll Miss Working With reddit s Victoria Taylor The Observer Archived from the original on July 7 2015 Retrieved July 12 2015 McCormick Rich 3 July 2015 Huge chunks of Reddit are locked after AMA coordinator fired Archived from the original on 3 July 2015 Retrieved July 3 2015 Hern Alex 3 July 2015 Reddit revolts subforums shut down in protest over AMA co ordinator sacking the Guardian Archived from the original on 3 July 2015 Retrieved July 3 2015 Reddit in uproar after staff sacking BBC News July 3 2015 Archived from the original on July 3 2015 Retrieved July 3 2015 Further reading editAsk Me Anything 1st ed Reddit ISBN 978 0692582268 External links editOfficial website Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title R IAmA amp oldid 1218399539, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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