The Free Press Crisis of 1800 : Thomas Cooper's Trial for Seditious Libel
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| Title: | The Free Press Crisis of 1800 : Thomas Cooper's Trial for Seditious Libel |
|---|---|
| Description: | The far-reaching Sedition Act of 1798 was introduced by Federalists to suppress Republican support of French revolutionaries and imposed fines and imprisonment “if any person shall write, print, utter or publish... scandalous and malicious writing or writings against the government of the United States.” Such a broadly and loosely defined offense challenged the freedom of the American press and gave the government the power to drag offending newspaper editors into court. The trial of Thomas Cooper in particular became an important showcase for debating the dangers and limits of the new law, one with great implications for both the new republic and federal constitutional law. Cooper's trial has now been rescued from long neglect and illuminated by Peter Charles Hoffer, one our nation's preeminent legal historians. While most modern students of the Sedition Act regard it as an extreme measure motivated by partisan malice, Hoffer offers a much more nuanced view that weighs all the arguments and fairly considers the position of each side in historical and legal context.Hoffer sets the stage by revisiting both the much better known 1735 trial of Peter Zenger and the subsequent fashioning of the First Amendment during the first meeting of the U.S. Congress. He then describes the rise of political factions in the early republic, congressional debate over the Sedition Act, and Thomas Jefferson's and James Madison's Kentucky and Virginia Resolves. After a close reading of Cooper's allegedly seditious writings, Hoffer brings the trial record to life, capturing prosecution and defense strategies, including Cooper's attempt to subpoena President Adams and Federalist trial judge Samuel Chase's management of the prosecution from the bench. Long after the Federalists had departed the scene, echoes of the free-press crisis continued to roil American politics—reappearing in the debates over antislavery petitions, the suppression of dissent during the Civil War and two world wars, and most recently in the trials of suspected terrorists.Hoffer's book is an authoritative review of this landmark case and a vital touchstone for anyone concerned about the role of government and the place of dissent in times of national emergency. |
| Authors: | Peter Charles Hoffer |
| Resource Type: | eBook. |
| Subjects: | Freedom of the press--United States--History, Trials (Seditious libel)--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia |
| Categories: | LAW / Legal History, HISTORY / United States / Revolutionary Period (1775-1800), POLITICAL SCIENCE / Political Freedom |
| Database: | eBook Collection (EBSCOhost) |
| FullText | Links: – Type: ebook-epub Text: Availability: 0 |
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| Header | DbId: nlebk DbLabel: eBook Collection (EBSCOhost) An: 3945830 RelevancyScore: 1038 AccessLevel: 6 PubType: eBook PubTypeId: ebook PreciseRelevancyScore: 1037.72192382813 |
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| Items | – Name: Title Label: Title Group: Ti Data: The Free Press Crisis of 1800 : Thomas Cooper's Trial for Seditious Libel – Name: Abstract Label: Description Group: Ab Data: The far-reaching Sedition Act of 1798 was introduced by Federalists to suppress Republican support of French revolutionaries and imposed fines and imprisonment “if any person shall write, print, utter or publish... scandalous and malicious writing or writings against the government of the United States.” Such a broadly and loosely defined offense challenged the freedom of the American press and gave the government the power to drag offending newspaper editors into court. The trial of Thomas Cooper in particular became an important showcase for debating the dangers and limits of the new law, one with great implications for both the new republic and federal constitutional law. Cooper's trial has now been rescued from long neglect and illuminated by Peter Charles Hoffer, one our nation's preeminent legal historians. While most modern students of the Sedition Act regard it as an extreme measure motivated by partisan malice, Hoffer offers a much more nuanced view that weighs all the arguments and fairly considers the position of each side in historical and legal context.Hoffer sets the stage by revisiting both the much better known 1735 trial of Peter Zenger and the subsequent fashioning of the First Amendment during the first meeting of the U.S. Congress. He then describes the rise of political factions in the early republic, congressional debate over the Sedition Act, and Thomas Jefferson's and James Madison's Kentucky and Virginia Resolves. After a close reading of Cooper's allegedly seditious writings, Hoffer brings the trial record to life, capturing prosecution and defense strategies, including Cooper's attempt to subpoena President Adams and Federalist trial judge Samuel Chase's management of the prosecution from the bench. Long after the Federalists had departed the scene, echoes of the free-press crisis continued to roil American politics—reappearing in the debates over antislavery petitions, the suppression of dissent during the Civil War and two world wars, and most recently in the trials of suspected terrorists.Hoffer's book is an authoritative review of this landmark case and a vital touchstone for anyone concerned about the role of government and the place of dissent in times of national emergency. – Name: Author Label: Authors Group: Au Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Peter+Charles+Hoffer%22">Peter Charles Hoffer</searchLink> – Name: TypePub Label: Resource Type Group: TypPub Data: eBook. – Name: Subject Label: Subjects Group: Su Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Freedom+of+the+press--United+States--History%22">Freedom of the press--United States--History</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Trials+%28Seditious+libel%29--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia%22">Trials (Seditious libel)--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia</searchLink> – Name: SubjectBISAC Label: Categories Group: Su Data: <searchLink fieldCode="ZK" term="%22LAW+%2F+Legal+History%22">LAW / Legal History</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="ZK" term="%22HISTORY+%2F+United+States+%2F+Revolutionary+Period+%281775-1800%29%22">HISTORY / United States / Revolutionary Period (1775-1800)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="ZK" term="%22POLITICAL+SCIENCE+%2F+Political+Freedom%22">POLITICAL SCIENCE / Political Freedom</searchLink> |
| PLink | https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=nlebk&AN=3945830 |
| RecordInfo | BibRecord: BibEntity: Classifications: – Code: 345.730231 Scheme: ddc Type: prePub Languages: – Code: eng Text: English Subjects: – SubjectFull: Freedom of the press--United States--History Type: general – SubjectFull: Trials (Seditious libel)--Pennsylvania--Philadelphia Type: general Titles: – TitleFull: The Free Press Crisis of 1800 : Thomas Cooper's Trial for Seditious Libel Type: main BibRelationships: HasContributorRelationships: – PersonEntity: Name: NameFull: Peter Charles Hoffer – PersonEntity: Name: NameFull: Peter Charles Hoffer IsPartOfRelationships: – BibEntity: Dates: – D: 01 M: 01 Type: published Y: 2011 – D: 29 M: 07 Type: profile Y: 2025 Identifiers: – Type: isbn-print Value: 9780700617654 – Type: isbn-electronic Value: 9780700637591 Titles: – TitleFull: The Free Press Crisis of 1800 : Thomas Cooper's Trial for Seditious Libel Type: main |
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