What would the Founding Fathers think about freedom of the press in America today? In Federalist #84, Alexander Hamilton argued that explicitly protecting press freedom was unnecessary. But Benjamin Franklin—America’s first great newspaperman—and Thomas Paine—whose Common Sense went viral before the word existed—knew better. In these imaginary letters, the printer and the pamphleteer speculate about a future where the press multiplies beyond counting while the village gazette dies of neglect. They built the fortress. Did we forget to man the walls?

What would the Founding Fathers think about cable news and social media? In this imaginary exchange rooted in their actual writings, Hamilton and Jefferson—both savaged by the same scurrilous journalist—debate whether a free press is worth its abuses. Jefferson declared he would prefer newspapers without government; Hamilton later defended a printer’s right to publish truth even against a president. Their letters imagine a world of instant news and pocket printing presses. The conclusions they reach will challenge assumptions across the political spectrum. Read their exchange, then ask yourself: in a world where falsehood travels faster than truth, how do free citizens govern themselves?