My guess would be that rhyme-hating derives from the fact that - while much of the very best poetry is written in rhyme - so is much of the very worst, almost all of the dreary Hallmark stuff, web site after cloying web site of heart-and-flowers dreck, etc. and etc.
When somebody starts out to write in form, and what emerges botches the meter (and is consquently far more assaultive to the ear than bad free verse), is built on awful rhymes, flies up its own asshole with rhyme-driven inversions, pads in every line to force the meter, and focuses on simplistic themes - puppies are cute, kittens are cuter, spring is coming - it does a massive disservice to rhyme and meter.
I have a strong sense - this is instinct: I can't prove it, and would be interested in other opinions - that most neophytes and truly world-class bad poets write in rhyme. Quincy's DWA site has a long thread, for example, on the Worst Poem Ever Written, and virtually everything cited is rhymed. This has to rub off on people. When I listen to people and editors who "hate" rhyme what I believe I hear is a built-in prejudice against rhyme because of so much exposure to mediocre rhymed poetry, not through any sense of an inability to "hear" or "appreciate" rhyme.
[This message has been edited by Michael Cantor (edited January 14, 2008).]
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