Interim Reddit CEO Ellen Pao is stepping down, the company announced Friday. Reddit co-founder Steve Huffman will be the site’s new chief executive, while Pao will remain on as an advisor to the board through the end of this year.
Pao, who recently lost a high-profile gender discrimination lawsuit against top Silicon Valley venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins, is leaving her post after being harshly criticized — and occasionally attacked — by some Reddit users who blamed her for what they viewed as poor management decisions.
The situation came to a head late last week when widely beloved Reddit staffer Victoria Taylor was unexpectedly dismissed, to the consternation of many of the site’s volunteer moderators. Some of those moderators engaged in open revolt by effectively shutting off their groups to the public, while a recent online petition to dismiss Pao gained about 200,000 signatures.
Here’s Pao’s resignation letter, posted on Reddit, in full:
More Must-Reads from TIME
- Why Trump’s Message Worked on Latino Men
- What Trump’s Win Could Mean for Housing
- The 100 Must-Read Books of 2024
- Sleep Doctors Share the 1 Tip That’s Changed Their Lives
- Column: Let’s Bring Back Romance
- What It’s Like to Have Long COVID As a Kid
- FX’s Say Nothing Is the Must-Watch Political Thriller of 2024
- Merle Bombardieri Is Helping People Make the Baby Decision
Contact us at letters@time.com