I think the shift in country music programming was more gradual than was suggested earlier. In fact, Chet Atkins has long been regarded as one of the driving forces behind the commercialization of country radio in the 1960's and 70's (not as a performer, but as a producer). I see it as the inevitable product of the corporations that control radio getting larger, and hence exerting greater control and making safer choices. To beat my earlier McDonalds/food-based analogy to death, imagine a multinational corporation acquiring the local diner -- how long do you think the food would stay the same? At best, they would try to co-opt the "atmosphere" of the place, so as to replicate it on a large scale. They would give you artificial diner food (served by someone named "Alice" in an "authentic" old-fashioned waitress outfit), just like country radio sometimes attempts to give us artificial "down-home pickin'," complete with cowboy hats and "aw shucks" posturing. It's pretty transparent, really.

The good news, at least in my part of the world (Boston, Massachusetts, USA), is that there are alternatives on the airways. Many of the public radio stations (some of which operate under the auspices of local colleges and universities) are heavily into acoustic programming, much of which is quite good, and is run by people who have a real love for (and knowledge of) the music. Programs like Mountain Stage are routinely broadcast around my area, featuring some of the best acoustic, folk, blues, etc. performers around. And some of the other programming (Prairie Home Companion, etc.) also features some outstanding people. The good stuff is out there, as long as you know where to look. Why would anyone with ears even bother with big commercial country radio?