Possible Clues:

• Criticise cast not taking sides, essentially
• Vilify
• Boneheads endlessly caught by slander
• Cast maligning remarks at
• Slander in A Bug's Life? Pixar films' executive ultimately seizing power
• Like, essentially, to spread malicious rumours
• Impugn
• Slander peers as 'unreliable'
• Attack with evil reports
• Defame this in the way 'e's up at last