In a world of Poker affiliate communities are somewhat close to labor unions (or at least they should be).
Being part of such labor union only makes sense if it is backed up with a feeling of safety/protection and benefits it can provide to its members for a reasonable membership fee. If there is no such benefits and the fee is still present then such union will cease to exist.
A union is a respectable and strong (sometimes more than it should be) player in the commercial system, making it possible for the union to speak on behalf of its members and make those words be noticed and considered. More often than not there are no direct benefits for neophytes other than being a part of something bigger and having a chance to communicate with those who are better / have more experience than them and are willing to share. However, those who have contributed their time and knowledge to the union do have a bit more benefits than simply wearing a shiny badge.
Overall Poker Strategy is deteriorating from a place where one used to come to be educated and get an opinion of the ones they respect into an entertainment board with a bit of poker flavor to it. Going back to a real life analogies - what ones was a library is now downgraded to a local pub for the sake of profit (no doubt that more people visit an average pub than an average library). The goal has shifted from producing slightly loosing, break-even or better thinking players to generating enough fresh cannon fodder for ultra-hyper-turbo spin'go lottery.
