It has always been about money, selling advertising to the plebs, while pretending to offer a service. Just as commercial TV/radio channels are just vehicles for advertising.
Social media, (the for profit platforms), are ALL about making money for corporations, and giving plebs just enough attention to keep them coming back. It's also about pretending to be a source of communication between "friends and family" , to cover up what it really is, a way to exploit the personal data that most people are only too eager to put up on these platforms. It's data, (people) farming.