Throughout the
ence than Cato's Letters," historian Leonard
Introduction
Levy has written.6
history of this
In 1735, John Peter Zenger was arrested
country, pseudon-
In a 1997 decision, a federal district court in for seditious libel for publishing pseudony-
ymous and
Georgia invalidated a state law criminalizing mous essays by Lewis Morris, James
anonymous and pseudonymous Internet com Alexander, and others attacking New York
-
anonymous
munications. In so doing, the court issued a governor William Cosby.7 Zenger, a German
1
authors have
decision consistent with centuries of American printer who immigrated to the United States,
tradition and jurisprudence. Throughout the also republished several of Cato's Letters.
made a rich con-
history of this country, pseudonymous and Andrew Hamilton of Philadelphia defended
tribution to polit-
anonymous authors have made a rich contribu- Zenger. In his stirring oration to the jury, he
ical discourse.
tion to political discourse. Had the court held asked them to lay "a foundation for securing
any other way, it would have fallen into the com to ourselves, our posterity, and our neigh-
-
mon trap of treating the Internet as sui generis, bors" the right of "exposing and opposing
unrelated to any prior communications media. arbitrary power . . . by speaking and writing
Instead, the court correctly recognized that there truth."8 The jury's acquittal of Zenger helped
is no distinction to be drawn between anony- to end common law prosecutions of
mous communications on the "Net" and in a American writers and publishers under
leaflet or a book.2
British common law.
Thomas Paine's Common Sense, acclaimed
Unfortunately, the threats to anonymous
Net discourse have continued to proliferate as the work that first sparked Americans to
since the Georgia decision. U.S. and foreign think of separating from Britain, was first
law enforcement authorities continue to published signed simply "An Englishman."9
regard anonymity as a threat to public order. Perhaps equally famous, Alexander Hamilton,
Various pending proposals would encourage, John Jay, and James Madison wrote The
or mandate, changes to the infrastructure of Federalist Papers under the joint pseudonym
the Net that would eliminate it as a medium "Publius."1 0 They were answered by the Anti-
for anonymous discourse.
Federalists, who wrote under such names as
"A Federal Farmer" (Richard Henry Lee),1 1
"Candidus" (Samuel Adams),1 2 and even
Anonymity and Pseudonymity, another "Cato" (Gov. George Clinton).1 3
In the following century, as the tensions
Cornerstones of Free Speech
between North and South mounted, many writ-
Controversial and thought-provoking ers on the volatile issue of slavery also shielded
speech has frequently been issued from themselves behind pseudonymous identities.14
under the cover of anonymity by writers who For example, "A Colored Baltimorean"1 5 wrote
feared prosecution or worse if their identities that black people considered themselves
were known. Cato's Letters, an influential American and desired to live in America in
series of essays about freedom of speech and equality. "Communipaw" wrote about black
political liberty first appearing in 1720, were economic and social life and about racial preju-
written by two British men, John Trenchard dice among white abolitionists.1 6Women aboli-
and Thomas Gordon, under the pseudonym tionists writing pseudonymously included
"Cato."3 Cato's Letters had a wide following in "Magawisca"1 7 and "Zillah,"1 8 who suggested
America:4 Benjamin Franklin and numerous that abolitionists should confront inequality
colonial newspapers reprinted the letters; within their own movement.
Pseudonymity has continued to play an
John Adams and Thomas Jefferson both
5
quoted Cato. "In the history of political lib- important role in political speech in this cen-
erty as well as of freedom of speech and press, tury. George Kennan, a high-ranking member
no 18th-century work exerted more influ- of the staffs of General George C. Marshall
2