My theory is online streaming is more of a factor than the show
yep. From what I've seen: it's because a bunch of chess Twitch and Youtube people have been building up communities + meme-scapes around the game. QG added a bunch of new people who found the online community and got into it -- especially because with the pandemic people have been wandering the internet searching (unintentionally) for new hobbies to get invested in.
Oh, wow. I didn't think about how it is now also a spectator sport like esports.
The bongcloud attack changed everything
sounds like a joke but it's really true.
edit: and all of r/anarchychess
Chess.com has deals with most of the prominent streamers, too