I get that. It's like every political conspiracy is a "-gate". But its a useful shorthand, and thats what the term needs.
Every time I explain it to someone, I roll my eyes a little at those terms, but thats what it's called... It sounds so marketing. Trying to tell someone "join the Fediverse" feels like selling a cult, a little, lol
I may ask my wife if she'll let me set up something for her to scroll other than TikTok, though. She's not the type to dive into new stuff like this without good reason, but if I just go "here's your app, all set up with stuff you'll generally enjoy!" maybe it'll drag her off that godawful site.