Oh yes, they're very different. It's just not necessarily the case that one is to be preferred over the other.

I don't expect in a US structure my Obama texts would be hidden or deleted.

I think they'd be put on blast by multiple competing systems that are semi-automated to seek out and publicize "undesirable" behavior, and I'd end up receiving death threats from anonymous sources, sanctions from my employer, etc.

The outcomes are different, and I think the jury's out on which one is better. In fact, it's probably a personal preference.