"Folk music" is not really about the performers, it's about the audience.
There was something about the last revival which struck a chord with the general public who responded in droves. Folk music today has lost touch with the people in the same way as politicians have. It has become about performance rather than reflecting life and appealing to the myriad emotions of humanity. Many of the values promoted by the singers and songs of the last revival have been rejected by modern society, we no longer have much idea of who we are or what makes sense in life.