Why Self Hosted WordPress ?
“WordPress is an online, open source website creation [tool] …
probably the easiest and most powerful blogging and website content management system (or CMS) in existence today.”
https://ithemes.com/tutorials/what-is-wordpress/
This is an excellent discussion of self-hosted WordPress
Arguments for bloging apply equally to building websites
In todays climate of political corectness and censorship, this may be one of your most important considerations;
“Control your own site and content. Many free blogging platforms include a clause in their terms of service that state that they can immediately delete your entire site without warning if you violate their terms of service.”
Additionaly;
Host your own videos without fear of being censored or “deplatformed”.
No ads on your site
Very secure
Easily move your site anywhere.
Worfpress will be cheaper in the long run
Ownership of Content in Your Digital Life – Social Media (Part 1)
In this article we look at the content ownership agreements that exist between social media users and the companies behind Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. In short, we learned that as part of the agreement to use their services, users agree to give these companies a transferable license to use any content uploaded to each social media platform. As well, the actions and behaviours of users were used to generate targeted profiling data to sell to marketing agencies.
https://digitaltattoo.ubc.ca/2018/07/09/ownership-of-content-in-your-digital-life-social-media-part-1/comment-page-1/
Ownership of Content in Your Digital Life – World Wide Web (Part 2)
People who may wish to share their experiences, stories, and ideas on the internet, but are hesitant to navigate the terms of service of each respective social media platform may choose to publish content on self-hosted websites (as was the case with personal blogs in the days before social media).
However, escaping the terms of service of social media sites still does not grant absolute rights of ownership to a website, as one still relies on the services of other companies to successfully publish and distribute their site over the internet. So what do you own and have copyright protection on when you decide to create your own website? Are your articles, photos, and website design safe from theft or unwanted appropriation? Let’s find out what elements of a website are owned by its creator.
https://digitaltattoo.ubc.ca/2018/07/16/ownership-of-content-in-your-digital-life-world-wide-web-part-2/
WordPress.com vs WordPress.org
Did you know that WordPress.com and WordPress.org are actually two very different platforms? Often beginners confuse the two which leads them to choose the wrong platform. We’re often asked by our users which is the better platform: WordPress.com vs WordPress.org. To help answer that, we have created the most comprehensive comparison of free WordPress.com vs WordPress.org (self-hosted version) WordPress.com vs WordPress.org
Weebly vs Wix vs Squarespace vs WordPress – 2019
https://makeawebsitehub.com/compare/weebly-vs-wix-vs-squarespace-vs-wordpress/
CAUTION !!
Many “free” or hosted “done for you website services” do not offer an export function. You are unable to easily move your site to another platform without a lot of work. Ask before you do a lot of work