That is the paradox of popularity. In the beginning, people are like "why aren't more people using this; everybody should be using this; it is better than ________." And then once it gains popularity, these same people are "why are all of these outsiders ruining our little hamlet?; I didn't mean
those people should use it; I liked it better when it was small."
The fact is, with growth, things change.
But because of the federated nature of the #
Fedi, there is still hope because people can still start small to medium sized communities, often based on a niche or a theme, and still survive and still maintain their community's culture.