#Reddit social questions software#

The increased traffic for Obama's AMA brought down many parts of the website when it occurred on August 29, 2012. Other people, including Donald Trump, have conducted AMAs in a similar fashion on other parts of Reddit. Notable participants include then-United States President Barack Obama (while campaigning for the 2012 election), Bill Gates (multiple times), Bernie Sanders (amidst the 2018 midterm elections), and Holocaust survivor Alex Hershaft. Since then, a number of individuals have been interviewed in the IAmA subreddit, some of whom have appeared multiple times. As Reddit expanded, its staff attempted to bring in celebrity guests-early examples include businesswoman Caterina Fake. Initially, AMAs focused more on ordinary citizens these interviews still make up some of the subreddit's content today. Since its founding, similar features have appeared in other social media sites, like Tumblr and Ask.fm. Unlike its precursors, it requires proof of identity. The following demand for AMAs led to the creation of the current r/IAmA subreddit in May 2009. Reddit built on this idea with video interviews with site staff Alexis Ohanian and Erik Martin. This was followed by Something Awful's Ask/Tell forums, which was more focused on interviews with everyday people.

Participants included free software advocate Bruce Perens and Linux developer Alan Cox. 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. Contrastingly, r/IAmA places more emphasis on users answering the questions. They deemed the closest equivalents to be game shows, and radio call-in shows, which placed a heavy focus on the interviewees. Like the rest of Reddit, users can also upvote and downvote potential candidates, with the most favoured being more likely to receive an answer.Īccording to The Atlantic, this concept is new to the digital age.

They use the site's comment system for both questions and answers this process has been equated to an online press conference. AMAs are open to all Reddit users, but interviewees require proof that they are who/what they claim to be. 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.

#Reddit social questions software#