I have an uneducated palette (I'm 24), and frequently use RP as a means of expanding my knowledge of styles and terroir.

For example, I've been a fan of California Syrahs, so when I wanted to try an Australian and New Zealand Shiraz, I was able to pick a low-to-mid-90's RP scored wine and be relatively confident I was drinking a good example of its breed. I may or may not agree with his review, but I'll at least know that an educated, experienced person has liked that wine and that I didn't choose a poor wine upon which to base my view of Australian Shiraz.

I think you can expand discussions of Robert Parker to include any influential reviewer in a given niche. People accuse wineries of "Parker-izing" their wine; I think that's probably true! Some movies that I didn't care for were obviously "Oscar-ized" to appeal to the Academy voters. However, overall, I'd much rather have someone base their opinion of American cinema upon an Oscar-nominated film than lowest-common-denominator sludge like Transformers or Angels & Demons.

To conclude an already too-long post, I will say that I will take the personal advice of a sommelier over a written RP score any day, since I trust that person to take my tastes into account. At Picasso, the Master Sommelier chose a tiny Spanish wine for my girlfriend based on her tastes and the food she was eating, and she loved it; RP has not rated it and probably hasn't heard of it.