ASNE board elected, Ken Paulson becomes president

• By: ASNE staff
• On: 04/09/2011 17:52:00
• In: ASNE elections

SAN DIEGO — Ken Paulson, president and chief executive officer of the First Amendment Center, Nashville, Tenn., was elected president of the American Society of News Editors on Friday. Five others were elected to the organization's board.

In remarks at ASNE's annual convention, Paulson emphasized that the once newspaper-centric organization needs to broaden its membership to include the nation's leading thinkers about journalism, regardless of platform.

"Our most diverse, inclusive and innovative years are still ahead if we couple the passion of our past with the engagement and inventiveness we embrace today," Paulson said.

Paulson said ASNE will continue to champion newsroom diversity and the First Amendment, but also needs to focus on the unique challenges facing the news media today. He succeeds Milton Coleman, who became an ex-officio member of the board when his term expired.

Other officers elected: Susan Goldberg, executive editor, Bloomberg News, San Francisco, vice president; David Boardman, executive editor, The Seattle Times, secretary; and Chris Peck, editor, The Commercial Appeal, Memphis, Tenn.; treasurer.

Five directors were elected to the ASNE board, which is comprised of the four officers, the past president, 15 elected members and up to two appointed members.

Elected to the board for three-year terms: Neil Brown, St. Petersburg (Fla.) Times; Debra L. Adams Simmons, The Plain Dealer, Cleveland; Amanda Bennett, Bloomberg News, New York; Alfredo Carbajal, Al Día, Dallas; and George A. Stanley, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Board members whose terms continue: Ronnie Agnew, The Clarion-Ledger, Jackson, Miss.; Andrew N. Alexander, Washington; Milton Coleman, The Washington Post; Pamela Fine, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kan.; Diana Fuentes, Laredo (Texas) Morning Times; Anders Gyllenhaal, McClatchy Washington Bureau; Michael Oreskes, The Associated Press; Melanie A. Sill, The Sacramento (Calif.) Bee; Mizell Stewart III, Evansville (Ind.) Courier & Press; Margaret M. Sullivan, The Buffalo (N.Y.) News; and Kenneth E. Tingley, The Post-Star, Glens Falls, N.Y.

The ASNE board works with committees and the ASNE Foundation to forward the initiatives and goals of the organization, which was founded in 1922.

The committees and their chairs

AWARDS BOARD
Milton Coleman, senior editor, The Washington Post, chair

CONVENTION PROGRAM
Gene F. Policinski, First Amendment Center, Nashville, Tenn., co-chair
George A. Stanley, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, co-chair

DIVERSITY
Ronnie Agnew, The Clarion-Ledger, Jackson, Miss., co-chair
Karen M. Magnuson, Rochester (N.Y.) Democrat and Chronicle, co-chair

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
Amanda Bennett, Bloomberg News, New York, co-chair
William Sternberg, USA TODAY, McLean, Va., co-chair

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
Mizell Stewart III, Evansville (Ind.) Courier & Press, chair
Linda Grist Cunningham, Rockford (Ill.) Register Star, vice chair

MEMBERSHIP AND MARKETING
Andrew N. Alexander, Washington, co-chair
Pamela Fine, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kan., co-chair

PARTNERSHIPS AND PROJECTS
David Boardman, The Seattle Times, chair

SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON VIOLENCE AGAINST JOURNALISTS IN MEXICO
Alfredo Carbajal, Al Día, Dallas, co-chair
Anders Gyllenhaal, McClatchy Washington Bureau, co-chair

SPECIAL COMMITTEE FOR WEB STRATEGIES
James M. Brady, Great Falls, Va.