I had no preconceived notions about Medium when I joined. Actually, I had no idea at all about Medium when I joined. The ability to express myself and make some friends has been priceless and that made up for me seeing behind the curtain as to what Medium as a business really is, which is to a great but not exact extent, an MLM. I joined in late Sept 2020 to read, then discovered the writing aspects, and then rather quickly saw through the curtain https://medium.com/illumination/is-medium-a-malignant-narcissist-1f3d55793bf6 but I am still here for the benefits that you have identified.