Tokenization and the way content is monetized on Hive is completely superior to any other platform when the size of the user base is taken into consideration. Freedom from censorship applies to anything posted on the blockchain. No one can be deprived of control over their account. Web front ends are free to censor any piece of content they want but there are plenty of desktop and mobile front ends that cannot do that without the user's consent. There is a variety of front ends showing the exact same on-chain content and anyone is free to create one themselves. No single entity controls the chain, which is exactly the whole point.
The often overlooked advantage of Hive is the fact that people tend to be better behaved on Hive than on most other platforms.
All of us old timers remember the flame wars on Steem (the chain that Hive is a hard fork of and with which Hive shares all on-chain content up to the hard fork). But at least my experience is that Hive users are friendlier, more helpful and less driven by controversy and negative emotions than on mainstream platforms.
Why is this?
I think the difference pretty much comes down to controversy deliberately being encouraged by algorithms on Web 2.0 platforms. Web 2.0 platforms are monetized through advertising and nothing grabs people's attention better than negative emotions. Algorithms that control what people see in their feed tend to be tailored to bring about the desired emotional responses in the user.
I've seen some people argue against Web 3.0 on the basis of it being tokenized and how tokenization monetizes every interaction. Apart from some people sometimes (surprisingly rarely) complaining about how some earn better than others, my personal experience is that that most people are not bothered by differences in earnings. It is widely understood that someone who has spent a lot of time on the platform and built many relationships will earn more than those who are recent arrivals. It is also widely understood that those who create high-quality content tend to earn better than others.
On Web 2.0, monetization is not transparent but it doesn't mean it's not there. Content is monetized in a centrally controlled manner by the platform administration based on the business decisions made by the platform owners. Does hiding power differentials between users make for a more pleasant user experience? I haven't seen any evidence for that. Ad-powered Web 2.0 platforms are time vampires that feed on controversy. At the core of their business logic is to have their users glued to the screen to drive advertising revenue. Mental health or life management problems that come with that are deemed acceptable collateral damage.
In contrast, all Web 3.0 users are pioneers at this stage. Through the mechanism of tokenization and decentralization, they are the owners who have the power to shape the future of Web 3.0. Activity on a platform like Hive is the opposite of wasting time.
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