Stock has certainly proven that you cannot form your opinion about someone with a public image based on any type of media/blog/etc comments and talking to them face-to-face or speaking with someone you trust having done so is about the only real way to have a clue as to their integrity and code of ethics as a person.

Too bad when people reach a certain level of untruthfulness they just don't explode or have their head melt. That would certainly make many take notice about needing to change their evil ways.