In my experience, it isn't the intellectuals that put people off 'folk' music in the US (and squarely in the bluegrass camp), but the attitude we are seeing exhibited by some pretty arrogant and condescending British folk musicians here.

While their definitions of what folk music is might be accurate for them, as others of has pointed out, it is far too exclusive and limited to match our own experiences of music.

The thing that is truly off-putting about those sorts of attitudes is, it limits the definition of 'folk' to almost exclusively the Anglo folk tradition as the gold standard.

I love the Anglo folk tradition and it's North American derivatives, but it isn't even remotely close to the only 'folk' music I value and respect.

The use of terms like 'snigger snogwriter' is yet another sign of the attempts by Anglocentric musicians lording it over others--never a way to bring more folks in the door.

And they wonder why their fellow citizens are put off by the music?

Maybe it isn't the music that puts them off, eh?