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Indelible ink : the trials of John Peter Zenger and the birth of America's free press / Richard Kluger.

Van Pelt Library Z232.Z5 K58 2016
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Format:
Book
Author/Creator:
Kluger, Richard, author.
Language:
English
Subjects (All):
Zenger, John Peter, 1697-1746.
Zenger, John Peter.
Zenger, John Peter, 1697-1746--Trials, litigation, etc.
Printers--United States--Biography.
Printers.
Printing.
History.
Trials (Seditious libel).
Freedom of the press.
United States.
New York (State).
Freedom of the press--United States--History--18th century.
Trials (Seditious libel)--New York (State).
Printing--New York (State)--History--18th century.
Trials.
Genre:
Biographies.
History.
Physical Description:
xxi, 346 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 25 cm
Edition:
First edition.
Other Title:
Trials of John Peter Zenger and the birth of America's free press
Place of Publication:
New York : W.W. Norton & Company, [2016]
Summary:
In 1733, struggling printer John Peter Zenger scandalized colonial New York by launching the New-York Weekly Journal, which assailed the British governor as corrupt and arrogant -- a direct challenge to the prevailing law against "seditious libel", which criminalized any criticism of the government. Fronting for a group of powerful antiroyalist politicians, Zenger was jailed for nine months before his landmark trial in August 1735, when he was brilliantly defended by Philadelphia lawyer Alexander Hamilton. In this book, Richard Kluger recreates this dramatic clash that marked the birth of press freedom in America and its role in vanquishing colonial tyranny. Here is an enduring lesson that redounds to this day on the vital importance of free public expression as the underpinning of democracy. -- from author's website.
Contents:
Preamble: the essential liberty
Author's note on style
A perilous trade
Stormy Petrel
Power plays
Bending the rule of law
Battle lines
A superlative monster arises
An end to generous pity
Whiffs of Torquemada
Philadelphia lawyer
Indelible ink
Epilogue: the uses of whistleblowers.
Notes:
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN:
9780393245462
0393245462
OCLC:
937452535

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