I think this is really smart. It reminds me of something I read within the last few months, but can't find right now, that described the descent from "social networking" (a nearly forgotten term, despite being the term for websites like Facebook just a decade ago) into the hell of modern "social media." The key difference is that social networking was about connecting with people you actually knew (realistically up to a couple hundred people), and social media is about broadcasting to the masses (measured in thousands or millions) with the help of these algorithms to promote engagement at any cost. That's where everything just went off the rails, from my perspective. I don't know why your comment got down-voted.
Edited to add: It seems like this is what distinguishes a telephone company from a television broadcaster too.