They've never been really great, but my point is that they added more value then than they do now. One critical value they once provided was to discover and po

They've never been really great, but my point is that they added more value then than they do now. One critical value they once provided was to discover and popularize new styles. They don't do that anymore at all. Last time they did in a big way was probably grunge in the early 90s. Since then any new movements have had to go around the major labels. They've retreated to endless retreads of copycat pop.