I asked someone in the legal game a long time ago "what is the...

I asked someone in the legal game a long time ago "what is the legal defination of defamation" He gave the example of say you are talking to a group of friends in a pub and you were telling them about a particular experience with a person named X and you thought that person X was not to be trusted. In the above example this is not defamation but your opinion discussed with a private group. If however you stood up on the bar and said the same thing to everyone then it would be defamation.
I guess this being a public forum you have to choose your words carefully. Sometimes that can be hard especially if you have been dudded by smooth talking company announcements.
Thanks for the information Buffett