just read the thread.

very strange to see how the contributions got so venomous and upsetting.

Its the old chestnut that started it. What is folk? Someone suggesting that it gets a boost from the interest of a VIP. So in a way it was the title that started it. Almost certainly unitentionally.

But we live in a world where the music is perceived as under threat and, some people who have championed it for decades get very protective of what they perceive as folk music.

However whatever anyone thinks - there is no no way of limiting the English language and its shades of meaning - and the term 'folk music' certainly means different things to different people.