They’re not being paid, at least not directly. They don’t need to be. “Educational” “content” is a play to increase the personal profile as a “thought leader.” This turns into invitations to conferences and ultimately funnels into sales of courses and other financial opportunities
Hype marketing can look spontaneous, but it's almost always planned. And once the momentum starts, others jump in. Influencers and opportunists ride the wave to promote themselves
Criticism isn’t necessarily condescending. “You should be doing x because y” is just a plain assertion, it doesn’t imply any moral judgement or opinion of the author.