I find that criticism of music taste tends to happen more online than it does in real life. I'm a music major and so I share a love of classical music with my friends and all my other classmates, but beyond that our music tastes tend to vary widely. I've never witnessed any open judgment of someone's taste that extends beyond classical.
But online, it's different. Personally, the fact that I like genres like classical and jazz doesn't make me feel more cultured or better than other members who don't or who don't have an interest in it. I do get the feeling that some people have thought this way about me though but it's not true. I listen to all kinds of music and have an open mind, and I know what I like and don't like. I'm not here to flame people for enjoying music that I don't enjoy.
I think that music taste is often an extension of that person's character, so if they listen extensively to artists who are known racists/sexists/wife beaters/homophobes, etc, what does that say about the audience? I'm not going to call someone out for listening to those artists though.
I want MB to be a community where members are open minded about genres they haven't listened to or ones they assume they won't like, and likewise MB should be a place for education - members giving people good starting points when they want to get into new genres or artists, without the risk of anyone being judged for it.
So no, I don't think it's okay for people to judge others on their music taste. But unfortunately, it's not ever going to stop. Just like people get judged for other things like the clothes they wear to their socioeconomic status. It's just the way things are, sadly.
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