Hal 9000 said:
But it seems to have taken a penny on these and left a few pennies in return. In the OT, Ben seems viscerally aware of the sort of effects the Empire has on the galaxy at large, and with Vader as more machine than man. These give the impression of something other than watching the news. Originally this was because the Empire seemed to predate Luke himself, and Vader likely having a more involved history with Kenobi, before later continuity came about.

I don’t know if that’s what you were implying, but Ben saying Vader is more machine than man is a line from ROTJ, not ANH. So it makes sense for him to say that after seeing Vader in ANH. I saw a few people make the mistake of thinking the line was from ANH and thus was a plot hole, but it’s not. Just wanted to clarify!