Court decision in the trial of john peter zenger (1735) and the case of new york times co. v. united states 1971 strengthened

Court decision in the trail of John Peter Zenger ( 1735) and the case of New York Times co. v. United States 1971 strengthened the freedom of the press, guaranteed by the First Amendment.

John Peter Zenger was arrested for printing a publication in The New York Weekly Journal. It accused the governor William S. Cosby of corruption, rigging elections and crimes. Zenger only printed the articles without revealing the names of the authors. He was proved innocent by the jury that admitted his right to print allegations that yet had to be proved right or wrong.

The court ruling in the case of New York Times co. v. United States made it possible for The New York Times and The Washington Post newspapers to print the classified Pentagon Papers without the risk of government censorship.