The internet was already slop

Fair point but the different or key factor now as with alot of the areas AI touches, the problem isn't the tools or use of them exactly, it's the scale.

In this case the low barrier to creating the media/posts/whatever coupled with the pervasiveness of social media networks and their reach (also networks that aren't new), affording the rapid deployment and significant impact by bad actors.

The problem is the scale. The scale of impact is immense and we're not ready to handle it.

The difference is now everyone can produce nation-state grade slop spending just a few dollars at OpenAI.

But yes, you are right, I remember those black SEO pages, especially recipes, that would have what it seemed like thousands of recipes automatically generated with zero attribution or a contact page.