Not a cop-out, but I think it's an "all of the above" type thing. Yes, discussion boards are dying as the more accessible Facebook and Theme Park Twitter takeover (OU and WDWTragic, the last of the big boys, have been slow too). Yes, the community as a whole seems to get more hyped up these days about speculation games than the event itself. Which may tie into the third point, yes, HHN 26 is mediocre at best, and probably works even less having to follow up a strong contender for best ever event.
Theory I've heard from a couple fans--the reason there's no clear consensus on best house (or any order to the houses other than Chance being dead last) is that they're all close to average. A good run or your personal preference as to what a house "should be" is the only difference between ranking Ghost Town #1 and TCM #7 or vice versa.