What the post is describing sounds exactly like the post getting flagged by users, then uncensored by the mod team later on.

Ah, maybe that’s true. I confess I stopped hanging around HN years ago so I’m not up to speed on how ‘flagging’ works and how much influence users have over post visibility. I thought the OP made it clear that something ‘inorganic’ was going on, but I guess that could be user reports just as easily as it could be moderator action.

Either way, it’s still true that getting your tech news from Silicon Valley’s most darling tech incubator is a dumb idea.