All gossip can be hurtful or embarrassing

Whoever goes about slandering reveals secrets; therefore do not associate with a simple babbler. (Proverbs 20:19 ESV)

 Gossip is a sneaky habit. Gossip can make us feel good about ourselves because it puts others down. Why is gossip so bad?
- Gossip can majorly mess up friendships. Proverbs 16:28 says that “A perverse man stirs up dissension, and a gossip separates close friends.” When you talk negatively about others, you tend to look down on them—it causes you to lose respect for them.
 - Gossip also destroys trust. Have you ever shared something with a friend in confidence, only to have that information become common knowledge? I’d guess that was the last time you confided in that friend.
 - Gossip is also often untrue—or at best, it’s a misrepresentation of the truth. Most folks wouldn’t intentionally go around spreading lies about others; but when a juicy story comes in from a “reliable source,” we don’t think it hurts to pass it on. Proverbs 15:4 says that “a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit.” Spreading negative stories about others is hurtful in more ways than one.
 You see, the point is that whether the stories are true or false, all gossip can be hurtful or embarrassing to the one being talked about. —Marie Story [1]

 We should of all people be zealous to restore reputations versus destroying reputations, to protect a good name versus calling someone a name, to shut down gossip versus feeding gossip, to restore broken relationships versus begrudging broken people.—Scott Sauls

[1] Anchor Is Gossip Really That Bad?