I guess my question is: what is wrong with that interface?

Is it missing a popup asking if you accept the cookie? If you accept the privacy policy? That the EU passed a law? That they want you to subscribe? That they can't send you spam unless you give them your email address?

If medium looked like that site, I wouldn't have medium blocked in my /etc/hosts file.

One trouble with Wikis is that the control of the content is not very tight, so if you want to make a layout which expects images and texts to line up in some complex way you are using the wrong tool.