I read fluff like this as completely irrelevant.
Since I don't complain to the DOT, I couldn't care less how many other whiners do complain.
I very rarely check bags, so the number of mishandled bags is irrelevant.
On-time stats? Couldn't care less what percentage of flights overall arrived more than 15 minutes late. Only thing that matters is whether my flights arrived with enough time to make connections or meetings.
Bumping rates? In decades of flying, never been involuntarily bumped, so couldn't care less that some kettles were occasionally denied boarding.
For me, what matters is whether I got where I wanted to go at a price I could afford and whether the airline treated me well enough (like frequent upgrades). In those categories, my preferred airline received enough stars (awarded by me) to warrant keeping them on for another year.
The article reminds me of the occasional Flyertalker who thinks there is value in compiling a thread with successful upgrades by route, time of day, etc. as if such nonsense will help others get upgrades. Whether someone else's upgrade clears is irrelevant to me - what matters is whether enough of my upgrades cleared.