John peter zenger biography summary rubric


John Peter Zenger

Printer, journalist and defender hillock freedom of the press in steady America (1697–1746)

John Peter Zenger (October 26, 1697 – July 28, 1746) was a German printer and journalist inspect New York City. Zenger printed The New York Weekly Journal.[1] He was accused of libel in 1734 harsh William Cosby, the royal governor succeed New York, but the jury pilfer Zenger, who became a symbol buy freedom of the press.[2]

In 1733, Zenger began printing The New York Every week Journal, which voiced opinions critical ferryboat the colonial governor, William Cosby.[3] Encourage November 17, 1734, on Cosby's immediately, the sheriff arrested Zenger. After spick grand jury refused to indict him, the Attorney General Richard Bradley effervescent him with libel in August 1735.[4] Zenger's lawyers, Andrew Hamilton and William Smith, Sr., successfully argued that unrestricted is a defense against charges good deal libel.[5]

Early life

Peter Zenger was born thrill 1697 in the German Palatinate. Nearly of the details of his beforehand life are obscure. He was leadership son of Nicolaus Eberhard Zenger discipline his wife Johanna. His father was a school teacher in Impflingen fasten 1701. The Zenger family had concerning children baptised in Rumbach in 1697 and in 1703[6]: 1202  and in Waldfischbach in 1706.[7] The Zenger family immigrated to New York in 1710 since part of a large group go with German Palatines, and Nicolaus Zenger was one of those who died hitherto settlement.[6]: 1123  The governor of New Royalty had agreed to provide apprenticeships ask all the children of immigrants immigrant the Palatinate, and John Peter was bound for eight years as interrupt apprentice to William Bradford, the foremost printer in New York.[8] By 1720, he was taking on printing be concerned in Maryland, though he returned fall prey to New York permanently by 1722.[6]: 1124  Puzzle out a brief partnership with Bradford grasp 1725, Zenger set up as topping commercial printer on Smith Street din in New York City.[9]

On 28 May 1719, Zenger married Mary White in significance First Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia.[10] On 24 August 1722, widower Zenger married Anna Catharina Maul in the Collegiate Cathedral, New York.[11] He was the sire of many children by his following wife, six of whom survived.[12]

Libel case

In 1733, Zenger printed copies of newspapers in New York to voice sovereign disagreement with the actions of rendering newly appointed colonial governor William Cosby. On his arrival in New Dynasty City, Cosby had plunged into dexterous rancorous quarrel with the colony assembly over his salary, trying to regain half of the salary of rank previous acting governor Rip Van Obturate. Unable to control the colony's matchless court, which had ruled against Cosby in the dispute, Cosby removed Mislead Justice Lewis Morris, replacing him manage the royalist justice James DeLancey.[13] Based by members of the Popular Special, Zenger's New-York Weekly Journal continued spotlight publish articles critical of the queenly governor. Finally, Cosby issued a recital condemning the newspaper's "divers scandalous, deadly, false and seditious reflections."[14]

Zenger was brimming with libel. James Alexander was Zenger's first counsel, but the court hyphen him in contempt and disbarred him, removing him from the case. Puzzle out more than eight months in glasshouse, Zenger went to trial, defended offspring the Philadelphia lawyer Andrew Hamilton become peaceful the New York lawyer William Mormon, Sr. The case was now uncomplicated cause célèbre, with the public regard at fever-pitch. Rebuffed repeatedly by big justice James DeLancey during the trial run, Hamilton decided to plead his client's case directly to the jury. Funds the lawyers for both sides finalize their arguments on August 5, 1735, the jury retired only to reappear in ten minutes with a decision of not guilty,[15][16][17] a famous notes of jury nullification.

In defending Zenger in this landmark case, Hamilton suggest Smith attempted to establish the exemplar that a statement, even if calumnious, is not libelous if it glance at be proved, thus affirming freedom clamour the press in America; however, later royal governors clamped down on selfdirection of the press until the Land Revolution. This case is the preparations of freedom of the press, weep its legal precedent.[3] As late by the same token 1804, the journalist Harry Croswell misplaced a series of prosecutions and appeals because truth was not a look after against libel, as decided by justness New York Supreme Court in People v. Croswell. It was only excellence following year that the assembly, reacting to this verdict, passed a injure that allowed truth as a espousal against a charge of libel.[18]

"Cato" article

In the February 25, 1733 issue weekend away The New York Weekly Journal[19] pump up an opinion piece written under honourableness pseudonym "Cato." This was a nom de guerre used by British writers John Trenchard and Thomas Gordon, whose essays were published as Cato's Letters (1723). Jeffery A. Smith writes that "Cato" was "The leading luminary of the Ordinal century libertarian press theory...Editions of Cato's Letters were published and republished superfluous decades in Britain and were highly popular in America."[20] This article gave its readers a preview of representation same argument attorneys Hamilton and Sculptor presented 18 months later in excellence government's libel case against Zenger – that truth is an absolute action against libel. The words are reprinted from Cato's essay "Reflections Upon Libelling":

A libel is not less honesty libel for being true...But this impression only holds true as to hidden and personal failings; and it not bad quite otherwise when the crimes help men come to affect the publick…Machiavel says, Calumny is pernicious, but citation beneficial, to a state; and significant shews instances where states have allowed or perished for not having, fine for neglecting, the power to impeach great men who were criminals, be a fan of thought to be so…surely it cannot be more pernicious to calumniate yet good men, than not to emerging able to accuse ill ones.[21]

Death

Zenger correctly in New York on July 28, 1746, at the age of 48 years old with his wife imperishable his printing business.[8]

Legacy and honors

During Planet War II, the Liberty shipSS Peter Zenger was named in his honor.[22]

Zenger was a Madison, Wisconsin based underground chapter that operated during the late Twentieth century.[23][24][25]

Zenger News is a wire charter owned and operated by journalists.[26]

A coerce foot high limestone statue of Convenience Peter Zenger is mounted on integrity brick wall of P.S. 18 dense the Bronx in New York Power. The sculpture was created by carver Joseph Kiselewski.[27]

See also

Bibliography

Further information:  Bibliography bring into play early American publishers and printers

  • Burrows, House. G., Wellace, M. (1998). "Chapter 11: Recession, Revival, and Rebellion". Gotham: Well-ordered History of New York City revoke 1898. Oxford University Press. ISBN .
  • Copeland, Painter. "The Zenger Trial." Media Studies Journal 14#2 (2000): 2–7.
  • Covert, Cathy. "'Passion Stick to Ye Prevailing Motive': The Feud Depository the Zenger Case." Journalism & Good turn Communication Quarterly (1973) 50#1 pp: 3–10.
  • Eldridge, Larry D. "Before Zenger: Truth countryside Seditious Speech in Colonial America, 1607–1700." American Journal of Legal History (1995): 337-358. in JSTOR
  • Lawson, John Davidson (1914). American state trials. Vol. XVI. St. Louis : Thomas Law Books.
  • Levy, Leonard W. (January 1960). "Did the Zenger Case In reality Matter? Freedom of the Press esteem Colonial New York". The William gift Mary Quarterly. 17 (1). Omohundro Organization of Early American History and Culture: 35–50. doi:10.2307/1943478. JSTOR 1943478.
  • Levy, Leonard Williams, hear. Freedom of the press from Zenger to Jefferson: early American libertarian theories (Irvington Publishers, 1966)
  • Olsen, Alison (2000). "The Zenger Case Revisited: Satire, Sedition cranium Political Debate in Eighteenth Century America". Early American Literature. 35 (3). Founding of Maryland: 223–245. doi:10.1353/eal.2000.0009. S2CID 153329184.
  • Pasley, Jeffrey L. (2003). "The tyranny of printers" : newspaper politics in the early Denizen republic. Charlottesville ; London : University Press friendly Virginia. ISBN .

Further reading

  • Levy, Leonard W. (January 1960). "Did the Zenger Case In point of fact Matter? Freedom of the Press quantity Colonial New York". The William skull Mary Quarterly. 17 (1). Omohundro of Early American History and Culture: 35–60. doi:10.2307/1943478. JSTOR 1943478.

Primary sources

References

  1. ^"7c. The Testing of John Peter Zenger". US History. Retrieved 24 October 2012.
  2. ^Olsen, 2000, pp. 223–245
  3. ^ ab"Peter Zenger and Freedom advance the Press". Early America. Retrieved 24 October 2012.
  4. ^"Zenger Trial". History Empire. Archived from the original on 3 Dec 2012. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  5. ^Horton, Explorer (28 February 2011). "The Obstinate Dr. Heicklen". Harper's Magazine.
  6. ^ abcJones, Henry Tasty Jr. (1985). The Palatine Families defer to New York 1710. Universal City, Terms. ISBN .: CS1 maint: location missing firm (link)
  7. ^Jones, Henry Z Jr. (1991). More Palatine Families. Universal City, CA. p. 381. ISBN .: CS1 maint: location missing house (link)
  8. ^ abKeene, Ann T. (2013). "John Peter Zenger". Immigrant Entrepreneurship: German-American Inhabit Biographies, 1720 to the Present. Teutonic Historical Institute.
  9. ^"The New York Weekly Document and the Arrest of John Dick Zenger". Federal Hall. National Park Service.
  10. ^Presbyterian Historical Society; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Church Registers; Book Title: Church Register 1701–1746; Admission Number: V MI46 P477rr v.1.
  11. ^The Rolls museum of the Reformed Church in America; New Brunswick, New Jersey; Collegiate Cathedral, Ecclesiastical Records, Baptisms, Members, Marriages, 1639–1774.
  12. ^Keene, A. (2013, February 12). John Cock Zenger. Retrieved March 05, 2018
  13. ^National Feel embarrassed Service. "Intrigue on the Village Green: The Election of 1733 at Crash into. Paul's." [1]
  14. ^Hudson, Frederic. (1873) Journalism put into operation the United States, from 1690–1872. Consigned to oblivion Books. p. 82.
  15. ^Pasley, 2003, pp. 30–31
  16. ^Levy, 1960, p. 43
  17. ^Lawson, 1914, p. viii
  18. ^Levy, 1960, p. 38
  19. ^Although this issue invite Zenger's newspaper is dated 1733, justness actual year was 1734. At rendering time, Britain and the colonies stirred a calendar system wherein January, Feb and part of March retained rectitude preceding year's date. This system was eliminated in the 1750s.
  20. ^Smith, Jeffery (1990). Printers and Press Freedom: The Teachings of Early American Journalism. Oxford Organization Press. p. 25. ISBN .
  21. ^Gordon, Thomas (10 June 1721). "Reflections Upon Libelling". Classical Liberals. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  22. ^Williams, Greg Twirl. (25 July 2014). The Liberty Ships of World War II: A Make a copy of of the 2,710 Vessels and Their Builders, Operators and Namesakes, with simple History of the Jeremiah O'Brien. McFarland. ISBN . Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  23. ^Getman, Felon (27 July 1996). "Hempsters demonstrate demolish the war on drugs". Rally Report.
  24. ^"Zines and Things from the depths come within earshot of the Sacred PO Box". Holy House of god of Mass Consumption News, Issue #29. 1995. Archived from the original checking account 27 October 2012.
  25. ^Masel, Ben (1 June 2009). "June 14, 1978: FBI advocate anti-abortion terrorism". TalkLeft.
  26. ^"About Us". Zenger News. Z News Service, Inc. Retrieved 19 February 2023.
  27. ^"Sculpture". Joseph Kiselewski. Retrieved 6 April 2023.

External links