Ken Paulson has committed his professional career to the promotion of the First Amendment. For more than 30 years, Paulson has used his experiences as a lawyer and a journalist to advance First Amendment causes.

As part of the 10th anniversary of Iowa State’s First Amendment Day Celebration, Paulson will be presenting his lecture “Re-booting America: News for a New Generation” at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the Pioneer Room of the Memorial Union.

Paulson is the former editor-in-chief and senior vice president of USA Today. He helped found the newspaper in 1982 along with a group of other journalists. Paulson now writes for the newspaper as a columnist, focusing on First Amendment issues

Paulson founded 1 for All, a national nonpartisan movement in support of the First Amendment, on July 1, 2010. His effort was supported by more than 1,000 organizations. He also hosted the television program “Speaking Freely” and wrote “Freedom Sings,” a show commemorating the First Amendment through music and multimedia presentation.

For the past decade, Paulson has continued to appear as a guest lecturer at the American Press Institute. His lectures focus on First Amendment issues and have been presented to thousands of journalists. Recently, he was chosen to receive the API Lifetime Service Award.

Paulson currently serves as the president and CEO of the First Amendment Center, a center that is committed to informing citizens of their First Amendment rights.

This lecture is free and open to the public.