There is a distinction (not really emphasized here though) between opinion (every one is entitled to their own opinion for example) fact (of which knowledge could prevent one from say, being deceived, swindled, or when such knowledge of someone could possibly even save one's life for instance) and outright, deliberate (knowingly false) defamation, that is designed with 'malicious' intent (that is the keyword here) to destroy a person's reputation, character, and well-being; even sometimes orchestrated to negatively effect an innocent person's means of earning a decent living, for example. That is a crime, and a very serious and evil thing...
