I think you're missing what I'm describing: which is that HN is a rare thing for what it is

And for what it isn't

Putting a little bit of what something specifically isn't (algorithmic personalization on HN) can change something and your own perception of what "is trending" or what is hot right now

There are very few corners of the web without this kind of algorithmic feed & maybe not everything needs to be "best of both" when including a little of both completely changes it