First Amendment Center's Paulson named USA TODAY editor
By The Associated Press
04.29.04
NEW YORK — USA TODAY, the country's largest-selling newspaper, named Kenneth Paulson to be its new editor today following the abrupt resignation last week of Karen Jurgensen in the wake of a devastating fraud scandal involving a former star reporter.
Paulson has been the executive director of the First Amendment Center since 1997.
"Ken’s work with newspaper editors around the country for the last seven years will give him special insight," said Charles L. Overby, chairman and CEO of the Freedom Forum, of which the First Amendment Center is a part. "His strong advocacy of newspaper ethics and the First Amendment will be a valuable asset for USA TODAY.
USA TODAY also made several other senior-level editorial appointments as it moves to rebuild its stature following the debacle involving Jack Kelley, who was found to have committed many acts of fabrication and plagiarism over the course of the past decade.
Paulson is a longtime newspaper editor who in addition to heading the First Amendment Center was a senior vice president of the Freedom Forum. He has been the host of the television program "Speaking Freely." He assumes his position immediately.
A panel of journalism experts, after a lengthy review, faulted the newspaper's editorial oversight and said USA TODAY's editors should have investigated Kelley's misdeeds years ago.
The newspaper's managing editor for news, Hal Ritter, also resigned last week and executive editor Brian Gallagher said he would remain in his current position only long enough to make the transition to the next editor.
USA TODAY announced that John Hillkirk, formerly managing editor of the newspaper's business section, would succeed Gallagher as executive editor, and that Carol Stevens, former editor of the editorial page, would become managing editor for news.
Gallagher was named editor of the editorial page, and Jim Henderson, the deputy managing editor in the business section, was named to replace Hillkirk.
The announcements were made at an afternoon staff meeting by Craig Moon, the newspaper's publisher. Moon said in a statement he believed Paulson's "news judgment and management expertise make him a perfect fit to move USA TODAY forward following this difficult period."
Kelley resigned under pressure in January after admitting to trying to deceive a team of editors examining the veracity of his work. A subsequent review by the outside experts found that he had engaged in extensive fakery and plagiarism dating back as early as 1991.