I'll have to disagree with that - I could bring regions from "I hate this realm" to "Very Loyal" in a matter of days. I assume it's harder in cities, I've never done controlled comparisons, but diplomat work can be extremely effective.
Nobles with high Oratory can do good work, yeah. I'm fairly certain that someone in Arcachon (might have been OW) was working to badmouth Arcaea, either as diplo or Priest. Hard to beat a religion.
