“Lashon hara, if I am not mistaken, does not apply if the discussion is intended to understand meaning or for the greater good.”
That is unfortunately a very widespread mistaken belief about LH. In order for LH to be okay there are many conditions and just saying that it is for the greater good does not make it okay.
By the way, my comments about LH were not meant for you. I didn’t think there was necessarily anything wrong with your asking the question since my understanding was that you were just trying to understand why they did this.
However, I did feel that the way that some posters posted was inappropriate and problematic. (If there was any problem with your asking the question, it is only because there will always be people who answer inappropriately. That is why this is probably not the best place to ask such questions given a choice, and asking a live Rabbi or Rebbetzin is always better. However, it’s possible that you have no one else to ask these questions to)