Yes, you would go back to print, and you would still be beholden to whomever runs the show. Even if it was the 70s environment in which there were so many local publishers and newspapers and it provided at least some environment for free thought.
But 90s were already a different beast than 70s, and in the meantime, big players have kept consolidating every sector, including publishing and news. So, you would end up in the same situation with everybody else.
Or, even worse - you could eke out a living in a tiny ecosystem of self-reliant publishers, leaving the public discourse to be dominated by big money who would run the show shape the society like they have always done. From wars to selling off entire countries.
You could also try obliging to your corporate overlords and make a good living. That is, by selling out every grain of your soul, like many still have to do.
...
The world is not the world of 60 years ago. The downhill tumble of the society in respect to free speech and corporate control has only been averted by the very cooperation and helpful behavior in software world - the behavior that you denigrate. The people collaborated to give everyone a voice, to challenge control, to break the stranglehold of corporations, and here you are, in this medium, easily reaching out to countless people in a way nobody could imagine before. You dont have to bow to those who own the company, you dont have to bow to editors, you dont have to bow to advertisers, you dont have to bow to anyone.
That has been possible only through cooperation that you so very much dislike.
