When thinking about Internet platforms, the lens I like to view things through is one of power. As a user what power do I have if any, to control my experience?

When thinking about Internet platforms, the lens I like to view things through is one of power. As a user what power do I have if any, to control my experience? To control what I see when and from whom. If I have little or no power, or the power is only shallow or superficial, if the power isn’t very granular, then this all counts against the platform. It may surprise some (younger) members of HN, quite how much power the individual user had on early “primitive” platforms like USENET or closed user groups or chat systems, compared to the big, modern social networks of today.