Public figures should not indulge in mud-slinging.

caricatures : a picture, description, or imitation of a person in which certain striking characteristics are exaggerated in order to create a comic or grotesque effect.
mockery : teasing and contemptuous language or behaviour directed at a particular person or thing.
slander : the action or crime of making a false spoken statement damaging to a person's reputation.
quarrelling : have a heated argument or disagreement.
mud-slinging : the use of insults and accusations, especially unjust ones, with the aim of damaging the reputation of an opponent.


Synonym of mud-slinging is slander