While part of me agrees with you, I don't think you sufficiently acknowledge the role of TV/video/home theater/IPods/downloads, and the desire for convenience in using them, in pulling people away from full range, low distortion stereo reproduction. I'm not convinced that surge of interest in hifi was a pure expression of desire for accurate reproduction of real music - it was a fad, albeit a widespread, long lasting, and productive and satisfying one. But people have all sorts of interests, and video, once it became practical and affordable, appeals to many people, and perhaps more people than are music lovers. And humans are lazy (if you want, put in whatever efficiency term appeals more than lazy), and some thing that sounds pretty much like music is good enough for many people. One suspects that those who listen to current music may be more likely to be satisfied by processed and compressed sources since the way the music itself is made is processed and compressed, but that group includes a very large part of the public.