Ben Franklin's new philosophy with this new phonetic alphabet was based on his belief in "prioritizing the alphabet by sound and vocal effort," as stated in Smithsonian Magazine. As a result of using this concept as the basis for his new alphabet, the letters C, J, Q, W, X, and Y were eliminated. In Franklin's mind, these letters were completely unnecessary to the English language because they make the same sounds as other letters. It was much more efficient in his mind to limit every letter to making one sound, instead of having multiple letters making multiple sounds. He included six new letters of his own making to replace those removed.
Despite his support from people like Webster, Ben Franklin's campaign to reimagine the English language was not widely accepted. While he theorized that making these adjustments would cut down on spelling errors and be overall easier for people to learn, the idea never really caught on. Turns out Webster actually loved Franklin's idea more than he did. Even after Franklin gave up trying to change people's minds, Webster continued with his plans to convert others to the phonetic alphabet. Ultimately his campaign fell on deaf ears, and as a result, we speak and write as we do today.
