From a consumer perspective, the big difference is that back then, the content on MySpace, LiveJournal, Blogger, etc. was discoverable. It could be found entering relevant search terms into Google or another secarch engine and the more useful content was self-curated by the creator(s) via prominent internal links, WordPress pages, stickied posts on forums and the sites themselves often had useful site-specific searches.

The two big problems with modern social media silos is that

1. content is ephemeral and that older content is not easy – or possible – to find.

2. they optimise for content that will push emotional buttons to drive “engagement” so they can sell viewers to advertisers

MySpace might have been a visual mess but I found it useful for finding out about a band or musician and listening to sample music (all without having to create an account on the platform). I came across all sorts of interesting niche content and communities on blogs, LiveJournal and web forums. These sites were all a lot more open; in most cases, you could easily view the content without having to have an account. If you liked a community and wanted to contribute you could create an account without having to worry about the site owners tracking you across the Internet.