PAP were the ones that pulled the podcasts on their own volition. I believe they still have copies of them they are likely allowing LE to review, but they pulled them, horrified and not wanting to promote something they didn't intend. They said as much themselves publicly, and this was referenced quite some time back.
Patriarchs give a once in a lifetime blessing. These blessings are often 1-3 pages typed on average and are not in massive amounts of detail. They see each individual only once and usually do not form any specific personal relationship with them. According to LDS beliefs, they hold the priesthood keys and authority to give these kinds of blessings. There is a line of authority for all the various parts of how this church operates, and what's occurred with Chad is a possible breach of that concept. He claims to be receiving revelation that is outside of his jurisdiction for lack of a better word. LDS call that stewardship. Technically only the Prophet/President has the authority to receive revelation from God for the entire church. This is where a lot of these sorts of people, including Julie Rowe, went astray.
There is a lot of latitude given for LDS members to prepare in ways they feel specifically prompted to do. To my knowledge the church advocates for emergency preparedness, but doesn't typically include guns and ammo and bunkers and so on. Those are things some members choose for themselves. Prepping is fairly normal, though not all LDS members do this. It depends on their personal choice on how involved in that aspect they are.
I know that it took years for the church to excommunicate Julie Rowe. These things are handled by local lay clergy, and the locals are not always fully aware of the extent of things going on with online groups or other things right off. It's highly likely Chad flew under the radar for a very long time. Even the one author I am close friends with who knows Chad personally said today on the phone with me that she is shocked by all this. She felt Chad was going down a path that wasn't good, but this whole thing is not something she could have ever guessed.