With the greatest respect Dave you are a bit off the mark. There have been collectors of songs since the seventeenth century and probably before. The term Folk Music is a relatively new term. The songs did not just happen they were composed, and often found their way on to contemporary street literature, or in fact originated there. Cecil Sharp with his mission to revive, came late to Folk Song. Baring Gould John and Lucy Broadwood pre dated him.
OK I'll stop there and suggest you do a bit of reading. Bert Lloyd Steve Roud etc. Try and avoid Harker and his Fakesong if you can, you may spend too much time throwing his book at the wall.
Meanwhile nowt much has changed for eons but medium and venue. The enemy of Folk Song or any song for that matter is silence. I do not think we're going to stop singing, and the rest is inevitable. Ask any performing singer/musician and you will be told that you do not choose music, it chooses you.