Protecting the Best Men
An Interpretive History of the Law of Libel
By Norman L. Rosenberg
380 pp., 6.125 x 9.25
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Paperback ISBN: 978-0-8078-4290-4
Published: September 1990
Studies in Legal History
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Drawing upon a wide variety of historical sources, Protecting the Best Men argues that there exists no natural, evolutionary history of free speech. It also challenges interpretations that rest upon discovering an "original understanding" about the First Amendment. Instead, this interpretive history of the law of libel highlights the complexity and historically rooted nature of legal concepts and legal consciousness in the United States.
Originally published in 1990.
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About the Author
Norman L. Rosenberg is coauthor of In Our Times and Generation of Americans.
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Reviews
"Rosenberg has written a fine book that demonstrates that libel law, like other supposedly timeless and apparently fundamental legal doctrines, depends on historical forces and follows no clear line of development.--Law & Society Review