I haven’t spoken to very many people about this

Obviously not. I, a millennial prefer the “new” design. I can subscribe to communities and subreddits with already is a good way to filter content. I don’t have to look at everything that gets thrown at me. Also I do not have to be scared there is a hidden ad somewhere inbetween like when using Instagram or whatever.

I also really liked the forums from the bronze age, but those were text-based at the post level, while Lemmy also supports images and links (including thumbnails).

Without seeing actual statistics, both accounts are anecdotal. But it’s my experience that I have had a lot less interaction of people who prefer new Reddit and a lot more with people who prefer old Reddit. Many Lemmy instances host old Reddit inspired front ends. I’m not aware of a single front end for Lemmy that strives to emulate new Reddit

I think Voyager is one of the most popular Lemmy web frontends. I haven’t used reddit for a long time but it seems to be more similar to the new than old design… I honestly don’t talk about reddit designs with people in the real world