Tom,
I'm talking in historical terms - yes we lost our voice when the tradition disappeared, but no, it was not replaced by pop music.
Today we are passive recipients in our culture, our only say in the matter is to buy or not to by.
There is no way in which pop culture reflects our lives, it comes ready made and packaged - we take it or we leave it. There were suggestions at the time punk came into existence that this would be the new 'peoples' culture, but the market soon put a stop to that.
There have always been other forms of music alongside of folk culture - music-hall, classical etc., but the uniqueness of the folk tradition is that 'ordinary' people have had a part in its making, adapting and transmission.
If pop music is now 'our' voice, please explain where it reflects any aspects of out lives or work in they way say the sea songs, or the bothy songs, or the poaching songs did. And please explain what part we have in its creation
Jim Carroll