17 across
Slander,
heartlessly
audacious
in
itself
(7)
Slander, heartlessly audacious in itself (7)
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The definition is at the beginning of the clue.
How the clue works
The definition is Slander — to defame. Audacious gives you ASS (think cheeky!), but strip out its heart to get AS, then tack on per se meaning in itself, and you've got your answer.