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The Public Humanist recently published the final article in Dr. John Hill's three-part series exploring the role of "fake news" in 18th century America.
In the first piece, Dr. Hill says that "fake news" likely cost President John Adams a second term, after his detractors erroneously portrayed him as an aristocrat who fundamentally opposed democracy.
In part two, Dr. Hill argues that defendants of laissez-faire and "savage capitalism" misrepresented the ideas of economist Adam Smith - who actually supported a "moderated capitalism" model with significant governmental involvement.
In his third and final article, Dr. Hill suggests how both Adams and Smith might address the torrent of fake news currently flooding the U.S.