Guilty Until Proven Innocent

Perception is reality. There are examples of it every day. Stocks are bought or sold because someone with credibility (or perceived credibility) says they do or don't like this, that or some other thing about a company. If this person is important enough or in a position where they are perceived to be an authority, their opinion will be taken as fact - a truth.

Here's another example:

A reporter with The Salt Lake Tribune (Pretty important title, wouldn't you say?) writes a story that starts with the headline, "Three Utah Men Charged in Mortgage Fraud Scheme." So far that's not bad. Three Utah men were in fact charged in a mortgage fraud scheme. I will however assert that this would not be an odd exchange over the breakfast table this morning.