Record companies strategies

Musicians and early forms of record companies always have had the same goal of reaching the most consumers to gain a bigger profit, but (to my knowledge) only started focusing on a group in society with the race records. During the '50's and '60's however, they focused on the new group and one of the largest groups of the time, the young people. Nowadays most advertising and production is focused on the young people. Since the '50's it only has been intensifying and i was curious if it has gone to far, or that it changed music's focus to a negative?