'I think it is always interesting when the media 'discovers' something that we folkies already know'… I watched the earlier report this morning. The media hasn't discovered something we already knew… the music they reported on is (their terminology) 'heritage' music. They think we don't know about this genre!
Actually, it's a very useful label, it avoids the 'traditional' (crusty), it also avoids 'folk' (jokey) and allows inclusion of 'singer/songwriter', 'roots', 'fusion' etc. The really useful connection is that it fits nicely under the 'Intangible Heritage' which the UN (but not the British Government) seeks to protect.
By the way, note the next media coverage of folkiness … after reviving the fortunes of the Dinnington Brass Band in South Yorkshire, the Beeb have turned their sights on saving an ailing morris side in Gloucestershire. Could we be witnessing the 'fourth revival'?
Paul