While the author makes good points, but clearly also has some nostalgia, I’m mostly thankful for the web we have today, it could have been much worse.
All serious publishers have their own website, and use social media for advertising mostly. Facebook articles and google news have failed. Facebook has not become “the web” as some feared.
Everything on the web is converging to the same bland, middle of the distribution curve, unoffensive mean. Everyone has A/B tested to the exact same product, and it's a bad experience.
The technology industry has become more about marginalization, to the point of nonexistence, those who don't fit in the middle of the curve. Might as well not exist if you're outside the 90% intervals nowadays.
All serious publishers have their own website, and use social media for advertising mostly. Facebook articles and google news have failed. Facebook has not become “the web” as some feared.