People in tech and the valley like judging things through the eyes of tech capitalism, and basically think that if “you’re good at something, never do it for free”.
The truth is that many people don’t view the world through these lens. They just enjoy a hobby and a community. Participating in a forum is a fun experience for many, and I’d guess the average Redditor would be less happy if they bought into the mindset that they must be paid for the writings.
True, but it is slightly galling when someone else is making handsome profits off your free labour. Like, I might happily give up a few hours to coach my child's football team at the weekend. But if someone is charging everyone to come watch the games and keeping the profits for themselves, that would be annoying.
Of course, Reddit has always been a for-profit business so arguably people should have known. But the fact that the mechanics of monetisation are deliberately obscured, together with the fact that (as I understand it) Reddit has actually been loss-making for most of its history makes it easy to overlook.
"Reddit has always been a for-profit business so arguably people should have known" is what I would say. Some people don't mind if their time is being profited from. I understand if some people do mind, but then they shouldn't be spending so much time on Reddit.
The truth is that many people don’t view the world through these lens. They just enjoy a hobby and a community. Participating in a forum is a fun experience for many, and I’d guess the average Redditor would be less happy if they bought into the mindset that they must be paid for the writings.