Let's face it - majority of the people who have been made into media personalities in the past did not make it there because they were good - they made it there because they studied in the 'right' colleges, networked with the 'right' people, got accepted to the 'right' positions in major media companies.

A lot of that was carried into early Internet era where people who were in such positions easily gained large followings. The power of free advertising.

In contrast, the citizen-creators who join the creator economy since the last few years are starting from scratch without the power of Ivy League connections who could get them featured in high traffic blogs or publications, leave aside the advantage of being working at, or having worked at a major media entity to help them gain followers.

Therefore it is not surprising that when one consumes the creative content from a lot of those 'traditionally-made' creators, most of those creatives feel bland, corporate, or at least elite - products of elaborate penmanship rather than words or concepts that touch one's mind and heart deep inside. Just like how the old times and the old media used to do.

So, no. Its not because a majority of the 'professionals' like Mark Madden are 'good at' what they are doing - regardless of Madden's own talents - its because they got a head start.

Such concepts like 'I am in this position because I am good at it/talented/deserving' are justifications that were used by the elite who occupied privileged positions throughout history. Today its no different - its not the Ivy League education, connections or that high profile post someone worked in that large media publication which gives him the success - its because he is 'talented'.