Final answer:
John Peter Zenger was a newspaper publisher who championed freedom of the press in colonial America. He was charged with seditious libel but was found not guilty, which highlighted the importance of a free press in the colonies.
Step-by-step explanation:
John Peter Zenger was a newspaper publisher in colonial America. He started the New York Weekly Journal in 1733 to expose corruption in the colonial government. However, he was arrested and charged with seditious libel by the colonial governor, William Cosby. Zenger's lawyers successfully defended him in court, arguing that a statement is not libelous if it can be proved, and he was found not guilty. This trial helped establish the importance of a free press in the American colonies.