I discussed this problem with a professor-friend (philosophy of science) of mine. He made two solid points:

(1) The pressure and rapidity of publishing - for many authors - means less time spent on individual projects.

(2) Your expectations as a reader partially determine your judgement as to how much value a book has. As your expectations increase...

> (2) Your expectations as a reader partially determine your judgement as to how much value a book has. As your expectations increase...

I understand this to mean that my ever-improving taste might make it seem like, as time goes by, a greater and greater proportion of books seem to be of low quality. However, it works the other way around, too: As people through new generations become ever more easily satisfied with mediocre writing, the need to produce high-quality works decreases. At least, this is what I think is happening with TV.

Good point. I think both can be happening simultaneously.

And unlike those old publications, there are digital copies now so they won't die the death they deserve. I say it with sarcism, but there's some amount of seriousness in there...

At least we have different filters now. Nobody is going to buy an obscure digital book that only has 0.8 stars, and Amazon probably won't recommend it to anybody.