Among all the possible reactions to news of corruption (of any sort) I've come to the opinion that humorous-resignation normalizes corruption and is, therefore, just as corrupt.
In fact, if I were a bad guy, I'd hire people to leave comments of "The system is broken", "This is normal", "Everyone does it", "There's no way to stop it", and rebuff anyone that proposes solutions. "[Your solution] won't be enough because..."
In the end, they need a scolding that will perhaps shame them into remembering they have a backbone. But I suggest that imprecision with the scold will reduce the efficacy of this bitter medicine, and the poster will focus on the minor inaccuracy of your analysis compare it with their own pure intent, dismissing the scold as bad faith. If instead you note that it is cowardice, and add a spoonful of pity to the scold, and remove the minor inaccuracy, it may have a greater effect.
Now you might respond that there’s so much corruption in the world and you, as an individual, can’t do much to stop it all. That’s probably true! However, the power and the great benefit of living in a free, democratic society (I’m assuming you live in a western or otherwise free country, otherwise you may have bigger concerns than review payola on Rotten Tomatoes) is that individuals are free to act and to hold people accountable when they abuse their power. Maybe this issue isn’t that important to you and that’s fine, but maybe some other issue actually is really important to you.
What I’m getting at with this long-winded post is simple: try directing your efforts toward one thing you care about and see if you can make a difference, even in one small way. It can go a long way to help you feel more effective and engaged in society!
also this: "(I’m assuming you live in a western or otherwise free country, otherwise you may have bigger concerns than review payola on Rotten Tomatoes)" ... is simply hilarious, implying that 'western or otherwise free' countries don't have anything more important than messed up film reviews for me to want to change.
I generally agree with you but not on that point. I don't blame people for checking out. Fighting the wrongness of the world is just extremely tiresome. At some point, people change themselves instead. They stop trying to fruitlessly change things and move on with their lives, often with the goal to make a ton of money so they can isolate themselves from the rotten society.
Sometimes the only healthy way to react to something is to laugh at the absurdity of it as if you were a sociopathic Joker. It's a coping mechanism for dealing with an imperfect unfixable reality.
That's my personal revelation.
But to your point, perhaps "just as corrupt" should have been "are, surprisingly, complicit in that corruption".
* "Effort" in this case being "going to the effort of posting". Be checked out? Sure. Being checked out is not my argument. Instead, being engaged-but-jaded and thus broadcasting "corruption is normal" (and thus penalizing corruption is "weird") is /itself/ corrupting.