I don't remember it being like this decades ago. Is it just me? I remember people used to curse only in private conversation, when angry, and never at the office in meetings and professional contexts.
I first went to grad school ~20 years ago, and no one cursed in class, especially not the professors.
I recently went back to school and got another masters, and nearly all the mid-20-year-olds drop f-bombs in regular classroom talk to the professor constantly, like they don't even hear that they're doing it. Some professors don't mind, and even respond in kind (though much more self-consciously), some are clearly displeased, but the students barely notice.
Don't get me wrong, I used that word plenty when I was that age, but only among peers in informal settings. Never at work or when talking to a person in a respected position.
There are pros and cons to it, I suppose. I don't think it's bad for gay people to be out of the closet, for example. But I also find stuff like the rampant swearing* or "I pooped today" to be a bit troubling as I get older and think "man I wouldn't want my kids to learn it's ok to talk like that".
* not casting stones, I have a very strong swearing habit myself that I try to curb. It's hard.
I am French and when I speak English I use fuck when someone fucked up. I also say sex when people are, well, fucking.
The f*k, g**y, m***ly and others are childish.
I don't know your line of work, but presumably there are contexts where you wouldn't say "fuck," like to your CEO, or your top client, or your kid's teacher, or something, right?
So people just have different opinions on where the line is, and that line has shifted to include more contexts. That's simply what people are noticing.