The Sun's color is white, with a CIE color-space index near (0.3, 0.3), when viewed from space or when high in the sky; when low in the sky, atmospheric scattering renders the Sun yellow, red, orange, or magenta. Despite its typical whiteness, most people mentally picture the Sun as yellow; the reasons for this are the subject of debate.

The Earth's atmosphere would modify the color of the Sun when viewed from Earth. Given that humans are a biological product of the Earth, it is reasonable that they would color the Sun as they see it from Earth.

Yes, the atmosphere scatters the light (more so when the sun's low in the sky), but look at pictures of the sun... in fact, save this picture and open it in Gimp, use the colour picker on the centre of the sun and see what colour you get!
Here:

It's obvious the sun produces white light, otherwise it would not be refracted into rainbows that contain the color yellow.
Yellow is closer to the infra red or heat component of the spectrum so maybe humans associate that color with warmth as well as light?
The sun is not just about light.

The colour picker experiment shows that although it looks yellow it definitely isn't really..

Let's fill the sun in the picture with actual yellow, now we can see the difference more easily.



I'm pointing this fact out (partly) so that artists who wish to capture a realistic sun (if that is what's needed) have some understanding of natural phenomena, so they can apply that knowledge accordingly.
Also it's quite fascinating in that, yes, to most people it's contrary to their beliefs.

You can have monochromatic yellow (like the sodium lamps used on roads) or just a yellow-tinted white which will produce a rainbow.

I think if we paint the sun as yellow it may be just a convention, not a misconception as such. It's the symbolic warmth of the yellow colour that plays a part here, I think. We instantly associate that with the sun. But I have to point out here, that I don't think many artists actually paint the sun as yellow - at least not those who aim mainly for realism. I think most people tend to leave out the sun itself from their pictures to begin with, and if the sun is in the picture it tends to be a diffused speck of white with other colours around it. Of course, with people like me it's different - if I had the sun in a picture it would probably be orange, red and yellow, have a dollface and a paisley halo . That's the other type of art - the one that doesn't really care about reality.

Depends what you are specifically defining as its colour. eg. take a christmas light that is described as a blue light. If it is bright enough, the center will be white, not blue, but the haze around it will be blue. Look at the photo again. What colour is the sun causing the sky to become?

As AnMal said, I don't think any serious artist would portray the center of the sun as yellow but I can see why some art forms portray it so.

Sure, as I wrote, "...artists who wish to capture a realistic sun (if that is what's needed).."
I understand there are many different artistic styles (including my own, AKA "amateurish (barely even trying..)")
Anyway, the original post of mine was in fact copied from somewhere (I think it was a wiki article on Common Misconceptions... hence the title) which I just thought I'd bring attention to.. also on that list were these gems..

Thomas Crapper did not invent the flush toilet; flushing toilets were first used in the Indus Valley Civilization, around the 26th century BCE. The forerunner of the modern toilet was invented by the Elizabethan courtier Sir John Harington, who was banished from court when his book on the subject poked fun at important people. Crapper, however, did much to increase its popularity and came up with some related inventions, such as the non-leaking 'water water-preventing' flush valve. The word crap is also not derived from his name.

Bulls are not enraged by the color red, used in capes by professional matadors. Cattle are dichromats, so red does not stand out as a bright color. It is not the color of the cape, but the perceived threat by the matador that incites it to charge.

A duck's quack actually does echo, although the echo may be difficult to hear for humans under some circumstances.

etcetera

It must be time now for Pink Fluffy Unicorns Dancing On Rainbows, surely?

wow, i hadn't expected pnk fluffy unicorns dancing on rainbows when i looked in on this thread! thanks for that, zero, it made my day . i now want to go to wikipedia and read about common misconceptions, sounds really fun. i had no idea people have ever said duck quack's don't echo.