They are providing something that people want: answers (not written in text speak) to interesting questions. As to why they appear to be getting so much tract

They are providing something that people want: answers (not written in text speak) to interesting questions. As to why they appear to be getting so much traction to a problem already solved by several sites (Reddit, MetaFilter, StackExchange, Googling), I'm not entirely certain. I suspect the answers market is just that large, and though I haven't followed them much, there must be some key (or controversial) people involved helping them. Never underestimate the buzz that human drama creates.