One method is to not live so close to the edge that such an accusation is believable. This is why I believe that Judge Moore is weathering the storm. Over the last 40 years his life has been as impeccable as one can be, which is why public opinion is on his side.
People believed that about former US House Speaker J. Dennis "Denny" Hastert too.
The whispering campaign in his district however was that many people knew he was a dirty creep. The allegations that Hastert sexually molested young men & boys while he was a high school wrestling coach started surfacing in 1992, I became aware of them in 1994.
Look how long it took for it to come out publicly what a slimeball douchebag Hastert really was. He was finally brought down in a money laundering scandal two years ago while paying one of his victims millions of dollars to keep quiet.
I'm NOT saying that Judge Roy Moore is dirty here. I have no idea. All I'm saying is you don't really know sometimes until an unrepairable dam breaks, like it did with Hastert.
Moore’s problem now is that what _was_ acceptable, in that area, 40 years ago is now construed as deplorable. Still unclear whether he did such, but if so then it’s the problem that some norms don’t age well.