In a way, yes.
I have checked Hacker News daily since I was 12, which is over 14 years ago now (excluding camping with no internet).
It gave me and some of my best friends growing up some great conversations topics. I’m also sure Hacker News has started many hobbies of mine and provided tons of education/entertainment over the years. By far, I think the best benefit of HN for me socially has been making me a more interesting person due to the topics I’ve learned about here.
I went from a homeschooled kid on a farm to->university->junior->mid-level SE->aspiring entrepreneur at age 26 while checking this site daily.
Great site, great community, and I pray it continues in the same way it has for decades to come.