Ahem...Hambini?

Network effects transcend the reality which existed prior to the network.

The term cancel culture was coined to describe the newfound ability of the mob, not the gatekeeping ability the powers that be have always had. Of course, it's always nice to turn it around on some gatekeeper complaining about it, but gatekeeping can be performed by a single individual, or a mere handful, who rest on a power structure.

Cancelling can't happen if it's only a handful of individuals attempting it; it depends on the network effects of the internet. Although the gatekeepers have begun to respond; Musk put everything into destroying Twitter.