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Thanks for the link. It seemed to me that the article is most interesting for the implicit assumptions that it makes.
Are there certain character traits that have become common in recent fiction? Sure; I suspect partly because that's where the money is at the moment, and partly because, by being popular, it sparks inspiration to write some variation on that theme. But such traits often follow particular genres, largely because that's the sort of thing that is popular in that genre, so if you only read in those genres you might start thinking that no one else is writing anything else, when in fact there is quite a lot of diversity about.
It does seem as though an artist of any sort that tries to represent someone or something outside their "lived experience" may find themselves subject to particular criticism from those that do have that experience, sometimes justifiably, but sometimes less so (or so it seems to me). This sort of thing reminds me of the old advice to writers to "write what you know", but has potential to extend it even further, asking whether you even have the right to write what you don't know, however much you research.
The trend appears to hit famous works more than others. This could be simply a matter of statistics, but I think it is also that fame attracts those who would normally have passed by and they spot things the more familiar have learned to take for granted.
I think that's why so many writers find refuge in fantasy. If you move what you want to write about into a fantastic setting then there is less room for someone to come in an take it personally and criticise accordingly. But it's still not entirely safe.
I imagine this situation also explains what I read about authors with special "sensitivity readers" that review books before publication. When I first saw that mentioned (on Goodreads) I was quite astounded by the idea ... but I guess it makes sense if you want to protect your reputation from occasional missteps.
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