It is far easier to provide an example for what I am trying to describe than to try and articulate it:
Example:
Scholar A: "Wow. That new study from University X is getting a lot of attention."
Scholar B: "I don't get what's so great about it. It doesn't seem that revolutionary to me."
Scholar A: "It's not. It's only receiving this much attention because University X is so prestigious."
Scholar B: "Ah. You mean the blank effect?"
I can't quite place my finger on it, but I know there is some pithy expression to describe this phenomenon.
Note:
"Looking for idiom/expression to describe an instance where one makes something seem better than it really is" is not quite what I am referring to, as the study was not deliberately "fluffed up".
Best Answer
This phenomenon is called "The Halo effect".
The Halo effect is an effect where the reputation or the trust of someone or something builds up so much that everything done or said by that person/thing starts appearing to be divine, and the best.
The phrase of 'Halo effect' can be used in relation to a thing as well as a person.
The opposite of 'The Halo effect' is 'The Horn effect', wherein, anything done or said by a person/thing is considered to be untrue and unbelievable.
So, the phrase that you are looking for is 'The Halo effect'.