The most important thing to do if you are a victim of character assassination is to resist the urge to react. It's natural to want to defend yourself, but this can often make the situation worse. 'Reacting' can give the person who is attacking you the attention they want, and it can also make you look guilty or defensive. Character assassination involves triangulation instead of direct communication, gossiping, misuse of power and authority, manipulation of the truth, deceit, groupthink, double-speak, spreading of rumors, unhealthy egotism, and narcissism are used to defame and cast doubt on someone's morals and integrity.