I was Reddit earlier and viewing one of question subs. The top 5 comments were all ‘jokes’.
What’s worse is no matter how unfunny the top jokes are you’ll get hundreds of cold comments flogging the joke to death.
The 6th top comment actually answered the question.
Lemmy may not have as much content but what is here is so much better quality.
I went back and forth on this when I was new to Reddit. At first I was frustrated by the humor in the comments but later I appreciated having a laugh so I actually liked it most of the time.
Laughing is good for you. Questions on social media don’t have to be stoic academic discussions. There are other places for that. It is ok to laugh a bit.
I also think the question should be answered, so I do agree with you…in part.
As an early adopter of Reddit, it always had jokes. What it only recently came into possession of is an inability to be serious. I consider the jokes an enzyme, in that they are a small piece that accelerates the coming of an answer and the proportion of joke and answer should be similar to enzyme and substrate. At least one of the top 3 comments should be an attempt at answering the question or both the jokes and the answers are devalued.
I agree with this entirely. A joke can be satirical and bookend a thread but the top comments deserve to at least be thoughtful and insightful. It’s much like how comedic timing and actual contribution have to be balanced in real life.
Try your best to get your voice heard but always ask yourself “Am I really contributing to this conversation?” before submitting.
Funny is good. The same endlessly recycled puns, references, and predictable comment chains aren’t funny, though.
I do agree with you, however.