Reddit is certainly a model of what a web community could look like.

MetaFilter has taken a different approach. The market is telling its team that approach is not economical. Perhaps there's some ideas they can borrow from sites like Reddit that baked more crowd-power and automation into their models from the get-go.

generating revenue isn't the same thing as providing a valuable service and it's kind of sad that i have to point that out in the first place. there's a reason i've read metafilter every day for over a decade and reddit is generally considered a step above 4chan.

Generating revenue /is/ the same thing as providing a service that can afford to remain in business, though. A service that shuts its doors because it runs out of money isn't being valuable to anyone at all.

Hopefully mefi can find a way to operate within their means without compromising their important characteristics.

"generating revenue isn't the same thing as providing a valuable service"

Well, from the cited stats, it's not enough of a valuable service to generate sustainable revenue.