Why is modern pop music today so terrible?

It could be another unintended consequence of digital technology as pop songs are constructed by digitally controlled machines and formulas that produce a level of perfection that doesn't capture the ear.  I loved my old handmaid, British MG, but don't have an emotional response to today's much better sports cars.

Reinstating the military draft would probably improve the songwriting.

Hip-hop and rap kinda took the swagger out of pop.

All that said, I think Green Day produces good stuff -- ragged, tuneful, empowered, and not manufactured in a digital lab.

Copy and paste without musicians... sample of a sample of a sample of a sample...

I think there is a lot of great music out there but they have no widely visible method to distribute it.  Back in the "good old days" of the Beatles, record companies invested and promoted bands.   They also ripped them off at times.  So now record companies are gone, no more of that 3 weeks in the studio-expenses paid- to write and create stuff.   Now the artists make money on the tour, not the record, and usually finance the record themselves.   So they do what they want.

There are a few great records out there made today.  Sarah Jarosz (americana) sounds amazing.  All her records done by the same guy Gary Pacoza who is really good at recording.  The Lorde record was done well, minimal processing, decent sound, nice and simple, not much production.  Michael Bishop's (engineer) DSD work is so good, like Eric Bibb and Hiromi.    Look up recordings by engineer Bill Vorndik (Bella Flek is a client of his), or George Massenburg etc.  So I think its out there.

Brad   

Exactly. Pop music is terrible in all time periods, just probably getting worse and worse. And that's good - let's see how bad bad can be.