Unfortunately posts with little intellectual value are rewarded. You see Steemit is a democracy, but the whales votes are worth more. The whales want to attract the common person to Steemit not just intellectuals. How do you attract more people to steemit? Ass, Titties and Rags 2 Riches Stories. The whales won't upvote your content because unfortunately you and me are not the ideal steemers.
That says a lot about states of minds of majority of people in our culture.
If our mind is full of bullshit, we get attracted to bullshit...