Really? This ground has been covered many times here on pfm. I'm talking about the mainstream mags, the ones I found in my local WH Smiths (or rather John Menzies - it was 1978, when I bought my first system) were full of Linn/Naim proselytism. The only one that maintained more of a balance was HFN/RR, but it still had its fair share of flat-earthism. (And I don't think I've ever read a copy of HiFi Review - it came later.)
There was a strongly evangelical quality to the promotion of Linn and Naim that I found deeply unpleasant, frankly. Let me quote one of the offenders, Chris Frankland, who wrote for the Haymarket mags until 1983, writing about that era more recently:
"... you have to understand what was happening to the hi-fi world back in the late 1970s and early 1980s. ... these were pioneering, ground-breaking days, ... At the forefront of this hi-fi revolution were Linn and Naim (but let’s not forget Rega, Nytech, Creek and a few other worthies). And by Linn and Naim, what I really mean is Ivor Tiefenbrun of Linn and Julian Vereker of Naim. Up until this point it is my opinion [and that of manufacturers like those named above] that virtually all hi-fi reviewers had written nebulously in terms such as treble, midrange, bass, coloration and soundstage. Therefore their reviews were completely incomprehensible and meaningless to any normal person.
When Ivor and Julian came along, they talked about music, rhythm, pace, real things in the music that normal people could relate to and hear for themselves in a proper, well-conducted in-store demo. They weren’t having to think if there was enough bass, treble, or whether the coloration was a bit pink, or a bit green. All they needed to know was could they follow the bass guitar? Could they hear what the hi-hat was playing? Could they tap their feet in time to the music?"
(See
http://thetomtomclub.ning.com/profiles/blogs/the-flat-response-magazine. This article prompted a long thread here a while back.)
Personally, I think that's utter bullsh*t. But the point is that these people saw themselves as revolutionaries, and those who disagreed with them as the enemy. Incidentally the baddies, to people like CF, included manufacturers like Quad, Spendor, Harbeth, Rogers etc.(as well as the US imports that came later), and those who like their products.