the fact that you can't comment on it's api is a pretty big reason why you shouldn't be throwing out remarks like "walled garden" just because you see marketing sites (techcrunch) doing it, they too understand little about the technology they write about.
everything is behind login screens so search engines can't index it. you consume it and interact with it on facebook's terms. whether it's a data roach motel, or a walled garden, or whatever, it's basically an AOL bromide that will make a few people very rich and then eventually fade into mediocrity and obscurity.
OMG gmail has a login screen.. eww data roach motel!!!
the information you read on facebook be it notes by your friends, their pictures, relationship status or what have you, doesn't make much sense in a public search. Either you have never used facebook or simply don't understand it.
would you mind being more specific as to what part of the tos you consider to be so horribly closed? please complement your response with examples of other more open systems on the interwebs