I kind of like the word pervasive or entrenched. Personally I don't feel like the term systemic makes a lot of sense in the context it gets used. It doesn't sound as serious though which I imagine is part of the point.
Neither's a perfect synonym for "systemic", but "systemic" is sometimes thoughtlessly or reflexively applied when it's not quite correct. Though that's true of most words, really. When life hands you "systemic", everything's a nail.
