But the CEO has the power to stop the bleeding. He could fire Dan Rather and the entire CBS 60 minutes crew and show that he is serious about cleaning up the situation. Instead of doing that he is dumping his stock. He knows that its not going to get better. He knows that stopping the bleeding is not going to cure the patient. He knows something we don't know. And he is reacting to that knowledge. That's insider trading.
In this type of situation a CEO cannot buy or sell his own company stock. It is presumed to be insider trading if he does.
Thanks for your cogent insights, and for keeping the thread going strong.