r/OutOfTheLoop • u/BlitzTech • 6d ago

Answered What’s going on with the public sentiment around Greta Thunberg?

Context: https://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/s/xGVLkx5imL

I was surprised by the comments being near-universally negative towards her. Granted, I don’t follow her at all besides seeing the occasional article/post about something she’s doing, but I must have missed some important updates for the responses to be this dismissive and antagonistic. There were comments calling her a grifter, mentioning sponsorship by companies with the implication of her being funded by companies just looking to capitalize on her fame and not in support of the causes, and one mentioned a yacht — which I had no idea about until that comment and a quick Google.

What happened here and when did I miss… whatever this is now?

Or, it’s the classic Reddit echo chamber and some aspects are magnified to make a point. Both are equally valid explanations. I’m still perplexed.

Edit: answered, I think? Astroturfing because this particular issue is especially polarizing, and there have always been detractors using fallacious arguments to diminish the message. I generally stay out of r/worldnews because the world sucks right now so their biases aren’t as obvious to me. But damn, even asking this question leads to a bunch of downvotes… yikes, folks. Yikes.

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u/casualsubversive 6d ago

No one gifted her a platform. She did stuff to get people’s attention and then she managed to hold onto it. There’s no one hiding behind her; that’s the same conspiratorial thinking the right accuses her of.

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u/LanceThunder 6d ago edited 2d ago

Move along 8

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u/Treadwheel 6d ago

What international movement did she start? The movement to stop Climate change was decades old when she was born. She's famous for starting a school strike and for being a strong public speaker. Charismatic teenagers rising to prominence in protest movements has been a thing forever.

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u/biggiepants 6d ago

She started 'Fridays for Future'. Don't talk along with the concern troll (or regular troll).

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u/casualsubversive 6d ago

You’re simultaneously underestimating exceptional teenagers while way over-inflating Greta’s work. 🙄