Define "gossip".

For me, the word has negative connotations: trivial, untruthful, trouble-making, etc. When immersed within any group, it is important to know who you are dealing with. By talking with each other, we get a better understanding of the group dynamic, and the role we can play in that dynamic. This is generally for the good, but, of course, it can be abused by bad apples. The challenge is not to let one bad apple ruin the whole lot. Language is necessary to communicate clearly and subtly. That skill can help to weed out the unconstructive folks.