I believe that gossip can be quite powerful if people are stupid enough to believe in them. Gossip can ruin somebody's reputation, regardless of the fact whether they are true or not - once people hear something bad or juicy about someone, they won't care much whether it really happened or not, but will rather judge that person based on that particular rumor. Sometimes rumors are based on true events, but most of the times they are not - mostly they are just sparked by someone who is jealous of that particular person and wants them to suffer.
