words of St. James we learn two salutary truths: the one, that the vice of the tongue is of great extent, a truth which derives additional confirmation from these words of the prophet, 'Every man is a liar' (Ps. 115:11); whence this moral disease would seem to be almost the only one which extends to all mankind: the other, that the tongue is the source of innumerable evils." Jean-Baptiste Massillon gives a lengthy sermon on defamation in which he states, "the tongue of the slanderer is a devouring fire, which tarnishes whatever it touches; which exercises its fury on the good grain, equally as on the chaff; on the profane, as on the sacred; which wherever it passes, leaves only desolation and ruin; digs even into the bowels of the earth, and fixes itself on things the most hidden; turns into vile ashes, what, only a moment before, had appeared to us so precious and brilliant." See also Absence of Malice Anti-Defamation League Blind item Blood libel Character assassination Chilling effect (law) Crimen injuria Criminal libel Cyber Bullying Cyber defamation law Defamation Act Defamation of religion and the United Nations Depp v. Heard Dignitary tort False accusation Hate speech Insult (legal) Intentional tort LGBT grooming conspiracy theory Libel Act Libel tourism Libs of TikTok Malicious prosecution Martin v. Hearst Corporation Political libel Rector v. Major League Baseball Advanced Media Rumor Small penis rule Smear campaign Strategic lawsuit against public participation United States free speech exceptions References Informational notes Citations Bibliography External links External links Bullying Communication of falsehoods Honor crimes Journalism ethics Tort law Censorship Lying