On November 22, 2022, mods of r/wallstreetbets formally ban GME.
“WSB is a trading sub, not a place to baghold for years. Apes are no longer welcome.”
This is an important development in the saga of GameStop / GME because it marks the point at which the media can no longer credibly pretend that the GameStop saga continues to be associated with the wallstreetbets subreddit.
There are many, many articles online that try to tell “the story of GameStop”, and the story generally goes like this:
Redditors on wallstreetbets did some stuff, GameStop had a real short squeeze, it ended, it was this whole crazy frenzy you shoulda been there, AMC also did some stuff too it’s very similar to GameStop. End of story.
For example:
cnbc.com - September 15, 2023 “The meme stock mania is now a movie. Here’s what has happened to GameStop and AMC”, the complete story in its entirety by reputable and unbiased source CNBC: “on social media sites like Reddit’s WallStreetBets” “On Thursday, GameStop closed more than 78% below its all-time high.” “The high level of short interest, and appearances by several meme stocks on the SEC’s “fail to deliver” lists, fueled theories from retail traders that there was “naked” or synthetic short trading going on. An SEC staff report on GameStop found no evidence of naked short selling, however.” “AMC and GameStop” - “As for the meme stock companies themselves, it is still unclear whether the fundamental theories of some Reddit traders were correct.” "The GameStop turnaround efforts of Chewy co-founder Ryan Cohen, who became something of a hero to the retail traders, have shown little sign of working. " “The financial results have also been underwhelming.”
There was no mention that GME investors moved on to new subreddits, there was no mention that GME investors have directly registered 25% of the entire company, there was no mention that wallstreetbets, the place where everything happened and presumably continues to happen, formally banned GME discussions as of November 22, 2022. These things were not mentioned, because they never happened. It was just this whole thing on wallstreetbets back in 2021 with a couple of meme stocks, it was a frenzy, and then it just kind of fizzled.
And there you have it. The complete story of what has happened to GameStop as of September 2023 by CNBC.
The media will of course continue to generally ignore any part of what is actually happening that doesn’t suit the narrative that they are trying to push. But, the longer that this whole story continues to unfold, outside of wallstreetbets, the less credibility that any reporting has that attempts to associate GameStop with that subreddit.
Here is another such example of how the story is represented by popular financial propaganda:
yahoo finance, March 22, 2023:
“GameStop skyrocketed in popularity in 2021 as redditors on WallStreetBets pumped so-called meme stocks.” “Shares of GameStop, a meme stock popularized on Reddit’s WallStreetBets forum, …” “GameStop skyrocketed in popularity in 2021 as retail investors used the WallStreetBets subreddit to identify and pump the so-called meme stocks.” “Forum chatter produced huge swings in the share prices of companies like GameStop and movie theater chain AMC, with GameStop surging nearly 1,000% during a two-week period in January 2021.”
Mentioned: GameStop, meme stock, AMC, wallstreetbets, popularity in 2021
Not mentioned: Superstonk or any other GME community, DRS, the fact that GME was banned from wallstreetbets in late 2022
Another example:
time.com, September 12, 2023: “Dumb Money and the Complicated Legacy of GameStop”: "activity on Stocktwits has since receded by half. Activity on r/WallStreetBets is now a fraction of what it was during the more manic period. " “during the meme stock craze, retail traders were able to stop—or at least delay—the demise of several companies that might have otherwise been chewed up by hedge funds. GameStop was able to stave off bankruptcy thanks to r/WallStreetBets’ support” “The movie theater company AMC was also staring down the barrel of bankruptcy in January 2021, when a flurry of ardent fans dumped money into its stock” “Everybody was always so worried about the mainstream media pushing a narrative,” she says. “But now you have like these singular people that can push crazy conspiracy theories, like, ‘I can make you so much money, just subscribe to my newsletter.’” "After seeing Melvin Capital lose billions from shorting GameStop, many hedge funds now monitor financial discussions on Reddit and other social media platforms to see what’s bubbling. " which ones? unspecified.
Mentioned: GameStop, meme stock, stock craze, AMC, wallstreetbets, January 2021, Reddit, “other social media platforms”
Not mentioned: superstonk or any GME specific community, 25% of all shares have been DRSd, the fact that GME was banned from wallstreetbets in late 2022