A "hue and cry" was originally a loud shout after a criminal ("Stop Thief!") to alert others nearby to chase after them and catch them.
Now, it usually means a public ruckus about something that may or may not be criminal or illegitimate. There could be a "hue and cry" about the AC making the building too cold for example. It could even just be a loud gossip and pity party that doesn't really mean to be productive or solve the problem the members are complaining about.
Dictionary.reference has this to say about veiled:
adjective
1.
having a veil:
a veiled hat.
2.
covered or concealed by, or as if by, a veil:
a veiled woman.
3.
not openly or directly expressed; masked; disguised; hidden; obscure:
a veiled threat.
4.
lacking clarity or distinctness:
veiled sounds; a veiled image.
It is meaning 3) that fits the bill. Whether it's a shot, a stab or a threat, when it's veiled, it is not openly delivered.
When the attempt is not too well disguised, you often see it as a thinly veiled shot.
Basically, the shot or threat is never really hidden when it is mentioned — the reporter would not have seen it!
It basically means that it is obvious that someone attacks another, but in such a way that they seem to try to hide the attack.
It is often associated with political dealings:
Instead of saying that my opponent is an idiot, I may just show my audience that a certain idea is idiotic, knowing full well my dear opponent has been defending that idea with fervour over the last weeks.
Such a thing could be called a (thinly) veiled attack at my opponent.
Best Answer
in other words, all men are thought of in the same way, covered like a blanket, even though they are not all the same. Another idiom for this is