IMO, what changed was that a significant portion of the bad actors got organized. It's much easier to make a lone troll get bored and give up than to deal with

IMO, what changed was that a significant portion of the bad actors got organized. It's much easier to make a lone troll get bored and give up than to deal with people with a playbook. Addressing the playbook in good faith will DDoS self-moderation attempts.