I think the decline of westerns is partially due to the rise of insidious political correctness. No longer is it OK to use words like “Indian”, “Injun”, “Chinamen”, etc and it’s certainly not PC to show women in being little more than servants or prostitutes (the occasional Annie Oakley aside). Hearing Wayne complain about ‘Native Americans who only want to peacefully co-exist’ just isn’t quite the same thing, ya know?
Plus, the whole thing about how politically-incorrect and damaging to little Tommy and Janey a good old-fashioned GUNFIGHT at high noon is. Oh no!! A gun!!
I cannot emphasize how much I hate “PC” and am just trying to help answer your question.
I agree with you and think you hit the PC button on the head. We live in a SMALL and RURAL area. At Halloween, our neighbor boy dressed up as a cowboy. Hat, boots and little six shooters. Home he was sent. His mother said there was no way that they could get him to understand why they sent him home.