Obviously just damage control but they do seem to be "fixing it". They must've accidentally implemented a feature to get and show image from the newest news post (which is often an ad), accidentally tested and vetted that feature, and accidentally pushed it.
Why do consumers let them? It's just step one of enshittification : first, be nice to your customers until they become dependent on you and you're the only game in town...
On one hand, regulators allowed big companies to become monopolies, so we don’t have a choice. Imagine if instagram and whatsapp were not part of facebook, how different social media would be? Or if bumble and hinge were competing with tinder, not just all being a part of match.com.
And on the other hand, we have examples like the console “war”, where Xbox messed up this generation so hard, that Sony now can do whatever they want.
I don't buy it. PC and Nintendo are more than enough competition. Sony has always been this way and they always will be. Company culture doesn't change, Nintendo will always be letigious, Microsoft will always seek acquisitions and Sony will always be arrogant.