Learning is becoming less esoteric and hidden, which is probably a good thing, even as the average person becomes less and less awed by academe. It is not so much the debates about the canon, so much as the inroads made by pop culture that I find so disorienting. The apparatus of publishing is becoming less and less cumbersome, and more importantly, cheaper and cheaper. Previously, the two main checks were editorial control and money, but in the democratic environment of the web, there is nothing to stop the flood of personal pages, 'zines, and special interest publishing. In opera too, it seems more important these days to have a good body than to sing well.
Today seems to be the golden age of hobbies, turned into money- maker.
The site is called Parterre Box, which is also the name of a hard copy magazine published by James Jorden. The lesson I see taught by Mr Jorden is that we can invent ourselves, and that there is no reason not to be flamboyant. Right there on the main page is a brief paean to outrageousness. Parterre Box is the world's only totally queer opera magazine. Six times a year your blood will freeze when you read the latest opera gossip, reviews, humor, commentary, diva worship, camp, lists and interviews.