I very much believe that a shift towards the "I-want-to-make-money" has happened, and I like reading about possible reasons here.
You already thought so some years ago, and posted your opinion.
Consider the social changes over the last years.
In Germany it changed this way f.i. to mention only some reasons:
- from free studies to tuition fees;
- the new bacholar studies don't offer some freedom beside your studies
- many people are working in jobs that don't allow you raise a family, now
- a huge number of freelancers - most of the journalists are freelancers f.i. won't earn enough money to get a sufficient pension when they retire.
- a huge number of people, very well educated people, didn't get more than bad paid or un-paid internship, where they got full paid jobs a decade before - and, just to mention it, _while_ doing they same work and having the same responsibilities!