A digital wrinkle on an old hoodwink. How many quotes have you seen on a ad, or on a video box from some critic you’ve never heard of? I’m suspicious of those ads that use people coming out of the theater singing the praises of a film myself.
Being a savvy consumer is the best defense.
Sony got caught having used a fake movie critic to generate positive reviews back in 2000.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Manning_(fictitious_writer)It’s believed by some the IMDB shut down it’s message boards to appease the studios.
Interesting. Never heard of the David Manning thing before. I always wondered about Roger Ebert giving ROTS 3.5/4 stars for that POS film. Of course, there is a lot of that quid pro quo stuff that goes on in the investment world too, where ratings agencies and analysts collude with hedge funds and investment banks to move asset prices.
Your advice to be a saavy consumer is spot on.