On the MD-80 where the thrust line is on the drag line the ATs is a great help on a manually flown approach right down to and after touch down.
On the DC9 it was a no no because there was no retard and once you landed the thrust levers would advance to try to keep the approach speed!
On the B-300 and up, where the thrust line is below the drag line, so you get a marked pitch couple with every thrust change, you can usually get a more stable approach by using manual thrust. There may be times when the ATs can be of assistance (we all know what a poor job of landing the AP makes in a crosswind situation so the combination of Ats on and AP off can make sense) but you must keep your hand on the thrust to get the feed back and anticipate the pitch couple.
I was glad of the Ats a few times at a low ceiling approach in LTN with a crosswind out of autoland limits. You can always override them but are a good aid.
I think the answer is that it is a matter for consideration and that reactions like "you aren't flying manually then" and other mores have no place in the discussion.
Now - what do you do on the A 320 with a fixed thrust lever position?