LAD #2: John Peter Zenger

1. Who was John Peter Zenger?
      John Peter Zenger was an immigrant who moved from Germany to the colonies in 1710. He was served as an apprentice to William Bradford, printer of the New York Gazette. In November 1734 he was arrested for libel. A group of wealthy people who were outraged at Governor Cosby’s decision to remove Chief Justice Lewis Morris and to prosecute the interim Governor Rip Van Dam hired Zenger to write articles politically opposing Cosby. Zenger then began to print articles criticizing the governor and all his decisions.  Zenger’s trial took place on August 4, 1735 and he was defended by Andrew Hamilton. On August 18, 1735 Zenger’s own newspaper the New York Weekly Journal announced his acquittal.

2. What was the controversy over his charges? Talk about Hamilton's defense.

                The controversy of the charges was that libel is defined as “a published false statement that is damaging to a person's reputation”. Even though Hamilton admitted that John Peter Zenger had offended certain individuals what he had written was true and therefore it was not libel. Zenger in fact had not broken the law. This was just an attempt Cosby to cover up his wrongdoings from the press. Even at the trial Hamilton had to directly tell the jury this because he was rebuffed many times by the new Chief Justice, James Delancey.

 3. What influence did his case have on American governmental tradition?
                This case set the standard for the freedom of the press in this country. In many countries back then and even today in different parts of the world people are punished for criticizing public officials, especially in newspapers. But in the colonies, as long as it was not false rumors the newspapers were free to say what they wanted without risk of reprimand. This was a huge advancement in human rights.

4. What is the lasting significance of his trial? Explain.

                Since the verdict of the trial was that publishers were free to print what they wanted to as long as that information was truthful, people could now criticize anything without risk of punishment. This set the stage for the beginning of the American Revolution where radical colonists could now print articles criticizing the British government and its policies like the Stamp Act. For example Paul Revere’s famous engraving of the Boston Massacre could travel around the colonies unchecked, spreading the resentment for Britain and gaining support for the coming revolution.