About last night...
How I Went Viral and Got Banned on Reddit in Under 6 Hours
Hey all,
And a special welcome to the 24 of you from my unexpectedly viral Reddit post on /r/meirl last night, before it got removed by the subreddit’s moderators:
For the people over the age of 35 and/or in long term relationships, you are looking at a screenshot I uploaded containing a message I received from a Hinge match onto a subreddit where users essentially share posts, memes, tweets, and images that accurately represent “me in real life” – hence the forum’s name, “meirl”.1
I got the idea after reposting the same, year-old screenshot to my Instagram story yesterday, when it received a little too many likes and replies from my followers.
The post earned nearly 3,200 upvotes in 6 hours, and climbed to the #3 “Hot” spot on the sub with 2.9 million readers, before I was permanently banned from /r/meirl.
When I asked for some justification, the subreddit’s moderators replied, “This sub isn’t for advertising your substack”
They’re likely referencing my reply to one of the comments on the post, in which I hyperlinked this very mailing list you’re reading.
At the risk of sounding too much like Chevy Chase’s character in that episode of Community where, no matter which side Abed’s six-sided die lands on, he always mentions that time he banged Eartha Kitt in a bathroom stall:
Don’t get me wrong, I’m totally grateful for all the new people here.
But the unbelievable irony in this post immediately backfiring – and so now I am still without girlfriend, no viral reddit post, no potential for even more subscribers, and a lifetime ban from a community I’ve been posting in for a decade2 – is incredibly r/meirl.
Luckily, there’s a subreddit for that :)
Anyway, just popping in to say that if you'd like to have you or your client's post analyzed on my next, "Why YOUR Videos Went Viral" column, please drop it here:
Submissions can be a TikTok, Instagram Reel, YouTube video, Xiaohongshu post, etc.
If you’re new here, below are some links to my previous articles of this variety, as a preview of the insight and analysis you can expect:
If that all sounds too complicated, you can just reply to this email with a URL.
Looking forward to seeing your submissions!
David
And honestly, re-reading this several hours later, I feel like this didn’t clarify anything at all.
surprised betches hasnt reached out to repost this screenshot tbh
dear david,
wow!
sorry you got banned!
glad to read about the tale here!
love and thanks for sharing!
myq