I now use Obtanium[1] for my open source android apps, it grabs apks straight from the source (github, gitlab etc.). Once you get each app set up its a breeze and you don't have to deal with fdroids strangeness.
I'm not sure Facebook and a now Facebook owned platform are good examples for private communications. There was an article posted here a week or two ago detailing how Facebook sold access to the contents of users private messages to advertisers.
Why are you conflating third party parts with counterfeits? If you actually read the article the reason the shipment was seized had nothing to do with the screens, it was the logo on the reused original parts that Apple believed were counterfeit.
Besides, I'm not American so maybe my view is different, but if a company can pay money to a government agency for increased policing for their benefit, and that government agency raids businesses under the direction of that companies representatives, that is a private force. E: And the fact that it's open for any company to use does not make it better in any way whatsoever.
That's not at all what is happening though. It's more like if I was to buy crashed Fords at salvage auctions to take the genuine parts from them, and Ford's private stasi force shows up at my house to take everything and then sell them for their own profit.
For some reason using reader mode in Chrome/Vanadium on my phone only shows the preview now. If I open it in Firefox/Mull which has JS disabled it shows up fine.
That said I've been trying to avoid NYT due to this anyway.