The world, technology & online culture have changed so much over these years. I don't think submission/curation standards could have remained consistent throughout.
Google, FB and internet companies becoming $>trn companies happened in that time period. Crime, sports & politics have become intertwined with the stuff that was on topic back in the day. FB or Twitter's policies are a major factor in elections worldwide. That's inevitably political. Cybersecurity, infosecurity and even (silly as it sounds) meme-wars are playing a big role in the current eastern european affair.
TV news came to us, moreso than we went to it...I think.