Poseurs like Bill Nye and charlatans like Fauci, and the people who hand them a fish for performing the right tricks on camera in their Walmart lab-coats... have just about squandered all the credibility that real scientists spent centuries to establish.

Maybe people are just getting turned-off to the whole idea. Which is a shame, because the more people are trying to bullshit you with bad-science... the more you need the ability to recognize good science.

Another thing is the fact that we're living through the Woke Inquisition right now... in which taking up the mantel of "scientific fact" may actually be persecuted as heresy, to whatever extent it may happen to violate the (dynamic and incoherent) dogma of the Herd.

You may be noticing, in part anyway, the "chilling effect" that results when pseudo-moral control freaks have effectively taken over the cultural and political levers of Force in society with no effective opposition (so far); to establish and enforce their religion as Theocracy.

I think so much of science has been corrupted by political winds, that people have decided that most/all of published science is no longer useful to understanding the universe and therefore are unwilling to discuss/debate any particular aspect. And the sides have become so entrenched that there CAN NOT be useful discussion or debate.

I lament the situation, but can't figure a way to get around the attitudes.

Galileo was attributed with the words "And yet it moves" True or not this has been the way of science and mankind. Humans in power shouting at the universe "You shall not pass" only to be crushed later on by facts.

I think they all went to their secret nerd bases. There is no reason trying to have a discussion or a discourse with people who are indoctrinated and voluntarily make themselves not much brighter or inquisitive than the average fence post. Believe the science or trust the science what kind of subjugation influencer peddling crap is that? Science is based upon facts & working hypotheticals in progress, Trust is earned not granted. That statement WAS something you could believe in, because it was demonstrable/empirical.

Just my 2 cents.

I understand that REDDIT, QUORA, and other newer platforms have taken the place of old-style Web forums, but they don't really work for me.

I think both being lefty platforms have their own issues with "science". You can talk about it with no problems, unless it’s the latest "current thing." Like trans stuff, climate change stuff, etc. In those cases, "science" becomes "scientism".

I don't know where all the science junkies have gone, but I imagine if you can't really express yourself even when you are correct, scientifically speaking, because we live in a postmodernist world of absurdity, maybe they simply lose the motivation to put that much effort into posting where interactions are low. And if they go to the main platforms, they have to toe the party line or risk getting canceled.

There are some YouTube channels that talk about science stuff and are huge, but I find them only involved with things that do not go against the current and popular narratives. They don't want to risk sponsors, so in some cases I've seen them being pushed to promote the current thing. especially the climate change narrative.

Academia is also in limbo for many, because we all know how infested academia is.

I don't know what will happen in the near future, but it is said that the west has gotten so bad that people travel to unlikely places to talk about stuff freely. One place I heard that surprised me was Istanbul. They say that you can talk about trans issues, politics, and many other things with people on the street. Unlike what has become of western Europe and the Anglosphere, where you have to self-censor or watch what you say, and everything is just way too polarized, you end up in fights rather than debates.

I hear Saint Petersburg is another place to go and talk freely. You might find less active but nice places in Eastern Europe... for now.

Also I think in the times of forums people were far more polite and respectful, but with the popularity of Facebook, twitter and short form formats, people just say any kind of stupid thing that pops to their mind.  Stuff they would not say in person. So I think online culture change because of technology and that in turn changed offline culture as well. Just my thoughts. 

Also, the number of new crazy ideas has gone to crazy lengths because of all the social media sharing platforms, and people are losing trust in government institutions, media, etc. immigration. There is a lack of standards in academia, so it’s harder to find common ground.

I remember the time when basic geography and history were common, you could build on that and go into more complex topics. Or science stuff, like math and physics. Today there are so many who do not even have basic fudnation in those disciplines but have head full of cynicism, and endless narratives, not scientific or historic facts. 

Looks to me that "science" and "scientists" have been politicized beyond any level of credibility.
Today "believe the science" amounts to listen to Fauci, obey the mandates, do what "we" tell you to do - otherwise you're an extremist and an existential threat to fellow humans.
As soon as "gov't" or politics gets involved (climate change, public health policy etc) "scientific methodology" goes out the window.
Its a bit like religion these days; which prophet are you going to follow and follow blindly?