I think a large part of the rise of a more moderate form of evangelicalism is largely a rejection of the harsh language of fundamentalists, and also a rejection (at least in the U.S.) of equating Christianity and the Republican party. I think many find the ugly rhetoric that comes out of the mouths of some in the far Christian right to be un-Christlike and reflecting poorly on the body of Christ as a whole. There are some anti-authoritarian streaks at work in some, but I do not think that is true of the whole. Rather than a refusal of authority I see it as a reclaiming of authority as being found in God himself, not in the words of institutions that have become nothing more than political entities.

There is a move too, at least in the Nazarene church to reclaim a more holistic theology. A prof at NTS used the illustration of a quiver of arrows. Nazarenes typically have used our salvation and sanctification arrows, but we have neglected to use or develop the other areas of theology that help make up a full quiver.

As far as access to info, I think being able to connect with like-minded people across the world has had a huge hand in shaping and enabling this transformation to take place. I can find like-minded individuals in Washington D.C. and Vancouver B.C. Canada for example, while taking a class with fellow from Nigeria and another from Australia. It's becoming, at least technologically, a very small world.