system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
If competition for faculty positions is so intense, why are there so many complaints about the quality of research?

I hear the following two claims quite often -

1. Getting a faculty position is tough, and even the top graduates from the top grad schools have trouble finding faculty positions at the most prestigious schools.

2. Most papers that are being published are not of high quality, while innovative and meaningful research is only done at the top schools and research institutes.

If the first claim is true, then shouldn't those top students and postdocs that end up at less prestigious schools and research institutes still be producing high quality research?
gpt
To succeed in academia, you need lots of publications.  You can spend 2 years crafting a great paper that will get into a top journal, or you can pump out 5 mediocre papers to mediocre journals.  Generally speaking, the latter is much better for your career, so that's what happens.