I'll take the devil's advocate here, since I actually really enjoy Reddit. The moderator argument only applies to a handful of subreddits. If you don't like the way one subreddit is run, create your own.

A good example of this was what happened with r/antiwork Basically, the sub started as a legitimate repudiation against the horrible pro-business culture & policies we have here in the west (wage theft, workers on welfare, etc).

It blew up and attracted a lot of cringey radicals. Things came to a climax when one moderator appeared on Fox News and made a fool of himself and the entire community. Thousands of people left and joined r/WorkReform

This new subreddit was about actually advancing the interests of workers in a way that is NOT insane. Advocating for things like worker unions, raising the min. wage, parental leave, etc.

There is without a doubt truth to the reddit mods being mall cops. But here's the thing. Every subreddit has its own culture, lingo & norms. Once you learn that, it's a lot easier to become an active member.

But here's the one reason I LOVE reddit more than every other social media. For all the corporate greed (which you pointed out), it is the ONLY social media platform where other users aren't trying to sell me shit.

Using Medium, Twitter, YouTube, etc, and everyone is trying to make a buck off my eyeballs. Watch a video about a new game to see if it will be fun? The video creator has an affiliate link. Of course, they'll say its the greatest game since Smash Melee.

Read an interesting thread on twitter? Oh, you better sign up to my email list.

Reddit is the only place on the internet where I don't feel like other users are trying to sell me something.

And as a marketer who has tried to infiltrate reddit to my own benefit, it's a LOT harder to do so than you would think. That made me trust other users' opinions that much more.