Even before social media got big, corporatization and consolidation had killed what made the 90s Internet so special. The reasons the corporate template starte

Even before social media got big, corporatization and consolidation had killed what made the 90s Internet so special. The reasons the corporate template started to rule the Internet in place of personal hobby websites are the same things that make Western society in general less vibrant. People want to participate, but everything is complex and they don't have enough time to be experts at everything (as with car maintenance, right-to-repair, and disposable/smart appliances that most people don't like); the threat of bad actors makes non-template sites dangerous or perceived as dangerous (as with letting kids go play outside); efficient template makers eat everybody else's lunch (as with franchise restaurants and soulless big-box stores); and when exhausted people are a captive audience, manipulative people with money can farm their attention (as with offline politics and advertising, and TV). The problem isn't new and it isn't really about group-think; it just caught up with the power of the Internet.