Your actual job is silly, but entertaining to a large number of people. Consequently, there's a lot of money available. Consequently, the industry selects for peak performance.
It's easy to look in from the outside and say "Wow! They're getting paid that much because they're that good."
But in reality it's that (total available money in the endeavor) determines (relative competition vs other industries) determines (absolute effort of top performers, to be top performers).
... that said, "erased working class creators" is objectively a ridiculous turn of phrase.
The internet has permitted individuals to become famous completely independently for the first time ever. And famous people and advertising is an age old relationship. Really all there is to it.
book reviewers, fashion critics, the people who decide which products get premium placement in store selves.. those people all used to control the machinery of influence. Now its in the open.
I think we'll get better at this over time but to me its a far more transparent system than we had in the past.
But, if you are actually successful, it's grind like any job. The ones who manage to monetize have to create content every single day or watch their numbers start to drop.
Job security is shit though. Among other trappings, like a cancel mob.
I imagine some people found slapstick comedians from silent movie era to be poor form of expression compared to drama or comedy plays, live performances to recorded music or very recently Megan thee stallion's performance or whatever.
Every type of performance art has its own value and target audience, one form is not superior to another. [2]
In the context of the article's premise that last point is important. Indian art is filled with great content, however dominantly portrayed both within and externally are the traditionally upper caste forms (Carnatic music/Bhartanatyam etc) in public discourse. Historically it is projected to be superior/ culturally better etc. There is lot of folk and regional traditions which have not had the same patronage, while things are changing over the years more artists and art from such forms are getting better recognition non classical instruments get more limelight, the history of that is deeply linked to Indian caste system and social struggles.
The author's premise[1] is that TikTok was a better medium than Instagram for that expression and that is now lost. He indirectly is saying Modi's government ( an upper caste right wing nationalist government) was not just banning a Chinese app but an important avenue of expression for marginalized communities.
[1] I don't follow either platform to have an opinion on whether this is true.
[2] The discussion on whether any art is valuable or useful is different kind of discussion I am not getting into, the premise here is if some art is valuable , just because we don't like some other form shouldn't make it less valuable