Alt.tv.x-files was wonderful on Usenet. When the new eps aired, people would post at every commercial break, commenting on the previous segment, in nearly real time. Show creator Chris Carter said in interviews that they read fan feedback and analysis of episodes from the group. It was a great Fandom vibe.
…and before that, watching postage sized video clips from Woodtock 2 as it was happening, through a dial up Prodigy account, and accruing a huge long distance phone bill doing it.
It’s a terrible handicap for the writers. Not enough to easily do character development. Cramming too much action into episodes. Horrible choice. It was especially bad in Picard.