> For all intents and purposes, Telegram is more similar to apps like Discord or Slack, seeing how most of the comms can be read by anyone who has access to the server.

This is absolutely true and a nice comparison at that, thanks! I will try to use that in the future.

Most of my non-technical friends using Telegram are convinced that it's more secure than WhatsApp. Even many non-technical news outlets are propagating these claims. It makes me incredibly sad.

They are promising a usable Signal, but instead are providing a Discord with mandatory phone number registration.

Why resort to such dishonesty? Just let the product speak for itself.