The thing is, parents genuinely want to do the best for their children. They're assailed from all sides by "experts" telling them that if they do such and such, their child will succeed, and that if they fail to do it, they're betraying their child's chances. There's a lot of insecurity around. If some "expert" says "DO THIS!" at least some parents hear that as "If I don't do this, I'm a bad mother!"

It's easy to say they're stupid, but there's a lot of emotion and insecurity and good intentions involved. For example, a study recently showed that expensive "educational" toys ("turn your toddler into a genius!") are actually counter-productive, since what toddlers need is lots of talking and listening and inter-action. You can say "Oh, but the parents who believe that hype deserve anything they get." I prefer to accept that it's human nature for quite a lot of people to believe what "experts" say, and therefore to make sure that said "experts" aren't misquoted, misrepresented by the media, or made up in the service of advertising campaigns